


Ocean Song

by SavannahsDrabbles



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012)
Genre: AU, Gen, TMNT, TMNT AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:07:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 25,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24775864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SavannahsDrabbles/pseuds/SavannahsDrabbles
Summary: Looking back on the past couple of days’ events, April should have realized that kidnapping an endangered creature was a bad idea.Well, scratch that.Maybe breaking into the high security laboratory was where she went wrong. Or –TMNT AU based off of the 2012-verse.
Comments: 46
Kudos: 75





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Decided to reboot an unfinished fanfic I've had rolling around since 2016. I currently have up to part four finished, and intend to post a chapter every couple of days until it's finished.

Looking back on the past couple of days’ events, April should have realized that kidnapping an endangered creature was a bad idea.

Well, scratch that.

Maybe attempting to break into a high security laboratory was where she went wrong. Or –

“This is totally wicked!” Casey Jones hollered from the driver’s seat as they took another sharp turn, tires spinning and spitting gravel up into the windshield wipers that were already working overtime. The creature in the backseat squawked and flailed as he skidded across the torn upholstery, desperately trying to sink his claws into something to keep from being thrown about like a rag doll.

“Slow down – and calm down!” The red-head snapped first towards the driver, and then over her shoulder at their passenger as she rapidly typed away on her laptop. A large jolt suddenly rocked the Jeep to one side and then the other, and April threw her arms out as a scream escaped her mouth. “CASEY! BRIDGE!”

Okay. So there were a lot of things that went wrong.

***

“Here we are!” A voice called loudly, causing April to jerk her head up and nearly lose an earbud in the process. “Now I know you’ve told me before, but remind me – what class is this project for? I don’t recall having to do anything like this until I’d reached graduate school.”

April smiled as she rose from her seat and shouldered an air tank onto her back. She carefully pulled the earbuds from her ears and tucked them into the bag of dry clothes she’d brought, then paused to looked out across the ocean. The sky was overcast that afternoon, leaving glare so minimal that even as the boat chugged to a stop beneath them, she was almost certain she could spy movement in the water below. “It’s for a dual-credit course. My science instructor knows that Dad is stationed here and that I study under him, so he said that I could use some of my research work as a science credit.”

“My word,” The forty-something Japanese man at the stern shook his head in amusement as he pulled a lever to lower the anchor. The ship responded with a groan, lurching slightly at the movement, and the air was soon filled with a steady _clack-clack-clack_ as chains were steadily released into the depths. “I swear, April – you work more than most kids your age. It’s a wonder you even have time to consider college courses. And you’re only – what – sixteen?”

“Seventeen as of last month,” April shrugged lightly and fought back an amused eyeroll as she continued to adjust her gear and flippers. Once she was certain they were secure, the girl reached for her camera and looped the strap over her wrist. She’d known Miles for a few months at this point and was pretty sure that they’d had this exact conversation every time they spoke. Her dad joked that his memory retention was about as long as that of the goldfish he studied. “Thankfully most of the college stuff is online, so I don’t have to worry about dealing with all of the paperwork from moving between schools. So it’s not too bad.” 

“Ah. Well then, I won’t keep you from your schoolwork any longer.” Miles tapped his wrist and jerked his chin towards the cloudy sky before moving towards the stairs that led below deck. Typically the rule was to never dive alone, but… “Remember, one hour tops, and then I have to check the boat back in for the evening – no exceptions.” 

“I know, I know – see you in a bit!” Positioning herself on the side of the boat, April fit the mouthpiece from her tank into place, flashed an okay sign, and then pushed herself backwards into the rolling waves.

***

No matter how many times she dove, April could never not be amazed by the sheer beauty of the sea. She often wondered if she’d feel the same had her dad chosen a different line of work, but she ultimately pushed those thoughts aside and chose to simply be grateful that she’d always had the opportunity to live near open water. It was, after all, one of the only consistent things in her life.

She couldn’t even begin to count the amount of times that she had moved in her short life. Once or twice a year, her dad was reassigned to a new zoo or university and that meant uprooting everything and moving to the next body of water. Everywhere from Florida to Quebec to now Osaka – a large port city in Japan – had served as a temporary place of residence to April, her father, and the rest of the research team.

 _‘Don’t worry, Pumpkin,’_ Kirby O’Neil had smiled at April over his mug of hot chocolate – a relocation announcement tradition in the O’Neil household. April remembered scowling into her own mug in response. _‘I spoke to the Board, and they’re willing to keep us in Osaka at least until you’ve graduated from high school. That way you can finish out your diploma in one place!’._

Five months later and the Board – a maniacal creature seemingly dedicated to repositioning its prisoners at random – had remained true to its word. April had quickly settled into the Japanese immersion class at her high school and was actually doing quite well in the school environment – enough so that the headmaster had paired her with another immersion student to help tutor him in math.

Casey Jones was an up-and-coming hockey player, the oldest child of the English Foreign Language teacher, and a big pain in the butt. Even though he was scheduled to graduate later that year, Casey seemed bound and determined to fail all of his classes – meaning that he and April spent more than the intended amount of time studying and hanging out together.

_“_ _It’s just you and me against Japan, Red,” Casey often joked as he would flash her a gap-toothed grin. “Us immigrants gotta stick together.”_

If not for his cocky attitude and constant flirting, April might have thought that he was cute.

Might.

April gave a few kicks as she allowed thoughts of school to drift away and happily rolled in the cool water. Several silver fish darted out of her way as she sank lazily past, raising her camera in time to capture a couple of photos. Her blue eyes widened in awe as a class of clownfish and several jellyfish followed, and she rapidly snapped several pictures before they could float out of range. The water grew rapidly colder and darker with every few feet, aided by the clouds that were constantly drifting in front of the sun. Minutes slowly ticked away as her distance from the bobbing boat lengthened until it was no more than a misshapen shadow on the surface of the water above.

Thick, twisted chunks of orange and pink coral and a forest of seaweed eventually began to rise up around her, and she paused in the shadow of a particularly large structure to glance at the time on her camera screen – only twenty minutes left before she had to head for the surface. Yikes – that didn’t leave very long to get more decent shots.

She furrowed her brow in thought – maybe she could convince Miles or another research assistant to bring her out again tomorrow -?

Suddenly, a burst of movement out of the corner of her eye grabbed April’s attention and sent her reeling backwards against the coral. Hundreds of tiny fish blew past her in a frantic, unorganized mass, the undertow tearing at the surrounding seaweed and adding to the chaos and confusion. Before she could right herself, a much larger form shot after the fish, closely followed by another of similar size. The masses cut through the water without a glance in her direction, clearly intent on their prey and unaware that they had been seen.

April gasped as she righted herself and stared at the large, rapidly moving shapes that were quickly disappearing into the distance – what the heck had she just seen? For a moment she wanted to brush it off as simply two seals hunting dinner, but something made her hesitate. Something was off.

Heart pounding, she slowly peeled herself off of the coral wall and ducked into the thick seaweed. Once she was sure that she wouldn’t be spotted, April raised her camera and aimed it at the creatures. By now they were far enough away that the camera wouldn’t focus, but this confirmed what she’d thought she’d seen. Those were not the usual side to side movements that most fish travelled by, or even an up and down motion like dolphins or seals would use – these things had arms and legs that they were kicking like human beings.

Still not acknowledging April’s presence, the two creatures suddenly split up and each silently moved to one side of the school of fish. They then began to duck and weave, almost dancing with each other as they continued to direct the fish into a tighter and more condensed mass.

The numbers on April’s camera screen blinked a warning, reminding her that she only had a few more minutes before she needed to head to the surface, but she shoved the thought aside. She had to get closer.

With one hand firmly clutching her camera, April pushed off of the coral and began to propel herself through the clinging seaweed. The creatures had already put several dozen yards between herself and them, but appeared to be slowing as they closed in on their prey.

Moving through the dense seaweed was more difficult than her targets had made it look, however. The girl grimaced as her limbs repeatedly got tangled in thick pieces of the plant, slowing her motion until she tore them loose. She was almost to the edge of the seaweed when the bigger of the two let out a sharp clicking noise, causing April to freeze in place.

Before she could determine what was happening, a net appeared between the two beings and they cast it across the fish. The smaller creature then reached for a long strand of seaweed that had been wrapped around his forearm and tied the bag shut, thoroughly trapping their dinner. He squealed and clicked in pride, sounding like a dolphin that had just performed a trick and was now expecting a treat. The larger creature chirped in response and reached out to pat the smaller one on the head.

April kicked forward, mind reeling as she struggled to comprehend what she was witnessing, when a thick piece of seaweed tangled itself around her thigh and brought her chase to a stop. The sudden change in momentum caught her off guard, and April flailed her arms around in surprise – only for her camera to slip from her grasp. The small device, now free of anything weighing it down, rocketed towards the surface as the girl let out an exasperated string of curses that were only just masked by her mouthpiece.

Eyes straining to not lose the creatures amidst the bubbles that had stirred up around her, April violently jerked her leg to snap the seaweed. When the clinging inhibitor only seemed to tighten in response, she let out a huff of frustration and reached down to quickly untangle her leg. What met her fingertips, however, was not part of the slimy plants that surrounded her.

The girl let out a muffled stream of bubbles as she twisted around and gasped sharply. The dark tentacle around her leg tightened in response, and several more shot out from the shifting forest to pull at her arms and hair. April instinctively reached for the emergency knife on her belt, but the massive squid let out a fierce grumble as its tentacles tightened around her arms and pinned them to her sides. April’s heart pounded loudly in her ears as she struggled fruitlessly and let out a garbled yell of panic.

Had she been diving with a team, the others would have stepped in at this moment to help her get away. But now here she was, alone and trapped with her only hope nearly twenty minutes away from even beginning to question where she was.

_Am I going to die down here?_

Just as another tentacle snaked forward to tug at her airline, the water around her erupted into bubbles and April felt herself being violently thrown back and forth. The tentacles remained firmly wrapped around her body, but she felt their grip slacken ever so slightly as two blurs rammed into the squid’s head with claws outstretched. Blood filled the water as the squid flailed beneath its attackers, scaly skin tearing underneath their claws.

April screamed again as one of the creatures suddenly turned on her, eyes wide and ghostly white, and then began to violently attack the limbs holding her tight.

Even as she was being tossed back and forth, April could tell that the creature fighting for her freedom was like nothing she had ever seen in her research. Shape-wise, the creature appeared to be a mix between a human and a turtle, roughly several inches shorter than she was. The terrapin was a pale olive color, covered from head to toe with splotches of purple scales. Thick claws protruded from large, rounded limbs and with each swipe it was clear that they were sharp enough to cut through flesh without much effort. A ramshackle string of lavender stones hung from one of the terrapin’s upper arms, somehow not getting cut or knocked off during the fight, and a quick glance told April that the other creature bore similar decorations on its own body.

When the thrashing tentacles finally began to loosen, the turtle nearest to her grabbed April beneath the armpits and quickly jerked her out of their confinement while the other continued to distract the squid. The turtle’s claws dug into her sides painfully as it held her to its plastron and began to swim upwards, causing April to cry out and kick her legs in panic. A series of sharp clicks echoed in April’s ears as she fought, and then several things happened all at once.

The water erupted with even more noise and movement – though April hardly believed it possible – and then the arms around her slackened and fell away, almost immediately to be replaced by several pairs of hands that she could recognize as being human. The next few minutes happened as a blur – she vaguely remembered several decompression stops as they ascended, each accompanied by hands gently patting her body and checking for injury – but before she knew it, they were breaking the surface of the water. There her world continued to move in a confusing blur of shapes and colors as more hands hooked under her arms and heaved her on deck, where her diving equipment was quickly stripped away and replaced with warm towels and gentle touches.

April blinked rapidly, her eyes stinging as they adjusted to the sudden brightness. “What – ”

“We’ve got you, Little One,” A female biologist that April recognized from her father’s crew came into view amongst the blur of movement and blankets being piled on her shoulders, her face creased in maternal concern. “Delta Team was out patrolling and pulled up right alongside Miles just as your camera surfaced – we were afraid something terrible had happened to you! And – oh, you’re bleeding!”

“I –”

Miles’ voice suddenly broke through the chaos. “Give us a hand – we’ve got something big!”

Rina’s head jerked around to look at something out of April’s line of sight, and then she wrapped her arms around the girl and turned her away from the ruckus occurring on the other boat. The woman muttered something softly in Japanese, her eyes widening as she pulled April tighter against her body. “Oh my word…”

“What’s going on?” April turned against the arms holding her right as a full net thudded onto the deck she’d been on less than an hour ago. The large mass inside of it was curled inward and bleeding slightly, but one limp arm was clearly visible, bearing a bracelet of string and lavender stones.


	2. Chapter 2

While he considered himself fairly levelheaded, there were a lot of things that ticked Casey Jones off: The referee calling foul play when an opponent _obviously_ deserved to be body slammed, the cafeteria workers skimping on tater tots (in no universe was four enough), and people being jerks to those who couldn’t defend themselves.

The worst feeling of all, however, was when people intentionally kept secrets from him.

From the moment April O’Neil had walked into homeroom that Monday, he could tell that she had something heavy weighing on her mind. The redhead had avoided his attention-seeking gestures and whispers throughout class, seemingly intent on doodling in her notebook and not paying the slightest amount of attention to the lecture. She rested her chin in her palm, arm forming a barrier that blocked her page from anyone who walked past. Even when Casey flicked a pencil onto her desk, her only response was to absentmindedly return the utensil and continue scribbling.

By the time lunch rolled around, Casey was nearly shaking with curiosity and frustration over the unknown. With one hand firmly gripping his sack lunch, the eighteen-year-old searched the sea of dark hair on the patio and in the cafeteria, and then finally stuck his head into the library – a first for him. Sure enough, April was tucked away at a table in the far corner of the reference section with her nose to a computer monitor and the same expression of deep thought on her face.

“Alright, Red. Spill.” April jolted when he dragged over a chair with a deafening screech and then flopped into it. Turning his lunch bag over on the table and scattering its contents, Casey shoved an apple towards the hand she was clutching the mouse with and then picked out a peanut butter granola bar to munch on. “I can tell you’re freaking out about something. Is it homework related, or what?”

“It’s nothing,” she muttered, quickly attempting to minimize the tabs she had open on the screen – though not before Casey caught a glance of the website.

“ _Mysteries of the Deep: Unexplained Open Ocean Phenomena_ ,” Casey snorted, sending a spray of granola crumbs flying, and leaned over to elbow the girl playfully. “What, are you trying to find the loch ness monster or something? Cause I’m pretty sure that’s in Canada.”

To his surprise, April let out a hiss of pain and grabbed her ribs right where Casey had poked her. The smirk on his face instantly vanished, and Casey raised his hands in surrender. “Whoa – I didn’t mean to hit so hard – my bad! Are you okay?”

April’s face tightened for a moment as if she were going to argue, her brows arching into the sassy look that Casey was used to seeing whenever he whined about how useless math was, but then she heaved a sigh and dropped her hand from her side. The girl motioned for Casey to quiet down, and then stood up quickly to peer over the row of computers around them. Once she seemed satisfied that no one was nearby, the redhead relented. “I got attacked when I was diving last night.”

“Wait – what?!” Casey nearly inhaled his granola bar and had to pause for a moment to cough violently. “By what? A fish? Or one of the other divers?”

“Shhh!” the librarian hissed from across the room.

“Don’t freak out – I’m fine.” April waved a hand dismissively, and then launched into a whispered explanation of what had happened. Casey listened with a furrowed brow, constantly interjecting with questions and April constantly hissing at him to quiet down and listen so that they would not be overheard. “He’s at Hamato Labs right now – probably still on constant sedation watch until they decide what to do with him. Dad wanted me to just go back to school today like nothing had happened, but –”

“You keep calling it a ‘him’. Did you get a look at –”

“Ew – no, Casey! Gross!” April let out a muffled shriek of indignation and punched the boy in the shoulder, though her quivering lips betrayed the hint of a smirk that Casey instantly decided was worth the shoulder pain. “I could just TELL that it was a ‘he’. He gave off a ‘guy’ vibe, I don’t know. And maybe the other one, too – though I didn’t get as good of a look at him.”

Casey seemed to calm down at this, as he leaned back in his chair with a grin and kicked his legs up onto the table – which April quickly shoved off with a jerk of her head towards the librarian’s desk. “Alright, so what’s going to happen to ‘him’ now? Or wait – do you get to name him as a new species or something? Like the ‘genus turtle-us, April-us’, or whatever?”

April shrugged, her fingers tapping unconsciously on the notebook that Casey finally realized was in her lap. The spiral bound pages bore dozens of doodles from throughout the day, all bearing features of turtles with cartoonish expressions. Several words had been written and crossed out in the margins, which Casey read aloud.

“Raph-ale? Donatello?”

The girl snapped her notebook shut with a ‘PAP!’ seeming to just notice that he had been looking at it. “Art history homework – another college course. Anyway, I should probably get back to class now. Thanks for letting me ramble – it’s just a really weird situation and I’m actually kind of glad to talk about it with someone that isn’t another scientist.”

“Well, I am definitely not a scientist, so no problem,” Casey flashed a thumbs up as April began to gather her belongings. “So, when do I get to see him?”

April froze, her hands hovering over her backpack. “Excuse me?”

The boy lifted his head to double check that they were alone, and then leaned closer to April. “You tell me all about some bizarre-o turtle man that might end up being on National Geographic or something, and then you won’t let me see it? That’s pretty low, dude.”

“It’s not that I’m against you seeing him – it’s just that I’m more than likely not even supposed to be mentioning the fact of his existence to anyone outside of the research team. Any number of hippie organizations or other laboratories would spring at the chance to claim him. Besides – if we determine that whatever made him like this is the source of an imminent biological or ecological threat, the lab is going to want to keep it out of the public eye until they’ve discovered a solution.”

“C’mon!” Casey slung an arm over April’s shoulder to keep her from standing up and leaving the table. “I won’t tell anyone! I promise – I just want to get a quick peek! It’s not every day that a kaiju saves your girlfriend – ”

“I am in no way, shape or form your girlfriend, and if you ever say that again I will punch you in the throat.”

“- from a squid! Come on – please?” Casey clasped his hands in a praying position and stuck out his bottom lip. “Please please please please please – I won’t stop until you say yes – please?”

April observed him for a moment with an expression of disgust, and then let out a deep sigh, earning a whoop of approval and a loud ‘Shhhhh!’ from the direction of the librarian’s desk. “Fine. I’m heading back to the lab after school anyway. You drive, and I’ll get my dad to sign off on letting you in with me.”

“Alright, all aboard the Jonesmobile, woo woo – _ow_! Why did you hit me?!”

***

The rest of the day went off without a hitch – though April would be the first to admit that she was less than focused during class. All she could think about was her interaction with the turtle, and the bubbling feeling in her stomach that occurred when she considered the fact that she would get to see him again that afternoon. Casey showed signs of distraction as well – though that was fairly normal for him. April made a mental note to ensure that he was getting his homework done and turned in.

When the last bell finally rang, the two teenagers hurried out to Casey’s old Jeep and gunned it to Hamato Laboratories. A quick knock on Dr. O’Neil’s door with no response told them that he was tied up on the phone, so the two decided to head towards the labs anyway.

“I don’t think they’ll let you into the actual exam room without my dad present, but you’ll probably be able to at least look through the glass,” April explained as the two rode the elevator down to the lower floors. Several marine biologists and lab technicians passed them on their way down, each stopping to ensure that April was doing well after the incident the day before.

“Didn’t you say he’d probably be unconscious or sedated or whatever?” Casey asked. He looked thoroughly out of place in the sleek laboratory building, all skinny jeans and beat up hoodie in contrast to the white lab coats and slacks worn by almost everyone they passed. Even April had grabbed her monogramed coat from the locker area before boarding the elevator and had thrown her hair up into a bun. Despite this, the eighteen-year-old still carried himself with an air of utter ease and confidence that April couldn’t help but respect. “Is that because he hurt you?”

April hesitated before answering. “Not specifically? It’s typically a standard procedure to sedate larger animals – particularly if they’re not reacting well to the lab environment. That way if they lash out, they’re less likely to hurt themselves or anyone else. But I could tell that he wasn’t trying to hurt me yesterday – it was just an accident.” She rubbed a hand on her side and grimaced slightly as her fingertips traced the tender bruises. “Unfortunately, it wasn’t easy explaining that to my dad. He still thinks that I was freaking out and imagined a lot of what I saw and felt.”

“How can you be sure that you didn’t?”

April’s eyes snapped to Casey’s as the elevator let out a ‘ping’ to alert them that they were nearing the correct floor. “Excuse me?”

Casey shrugged. “Nothing against you, but while this thing is cool and big and stuff, isn’t it possible that you kind of hallucinated him being… human-ish? I mean – maybe it didn’t really know that it was helping you?”

“No. He knew that he was helping me.” The words she spoke swelled with utter confidence that dimmed Casey’s doubts. “I just know it. You’ll see.”

Right as the words left her mouth, the elevator doors opened into a stark white hallway offset by the dark cement floor beneath it. Pipes and power lines ran the length of the ceiling in either direction, the whirring that they produced being the only sound in the otherwise quiet hallway. As the duo stepped out of the elevator, the motion activated lights immediately kicked on and flooded the halls with a dim light. A dozen heavy doors lined the walls, each accompanied by a keycard lock and a glass window to allow observation from outside. At the very end of the hallway, a large set of double doors beneath a glowing ‘Exit’ sign signaled the entrance to the garage through which creatures were delivered.

“Welp. I’m pretty sure we are going to get murdered in this hallway.”

April snorted and grabbed for Casey’s wrist, dragging him down the hallway towards Exam Room D. “C’mon, don’t be a baby.”

“I’m not. This… just looks like a hallway that someone in Saw would get murdered in.”

“Wuss.”

***

Despite her words of reassurance, April couldn’t help but feel on edge as well. She had grown up visiting labs with her dad and following him around as he worked. The smells of antiseptic and metallic surfaces were woven through her earliest memories, combined with days spent happily watching fish moving about in their tanks as her father helped to rehabilitate everything from enormous seals to tiny starfish. Such laboratories were what inspired her love of science and biology, and had always served as a safe place in her memories.

But even as she swiped her keycard and pushed open the door to the correct exam room, her recently donned lab coat rustling quietly around her, she could tell that something was very… off.

Casey stuck close behind, the warning of staying by the observation window clearly forgotten – or ignored - as the two walked hesitantly into the dimly lit room. April noticed that the main lights had been turned off – not unusual for when researchers dealt with deep sea or photosensitive creatures – and the only light being offered was from the panels that hung around the examination tables and over the door that led out to the loading dock. Filtered water gurgled in several tanks around the room, adding to the illusion that the room might have been located underwater or someplace hidden away from the rest of the world.

“Dude,” Casey murmured quietly. “I didn’t expect this place to be so creepy.”

“It’s not, usually,” April felt a palm along the white walls until she found the light dimmer and adjusted it just enough that they had a bit more light.

“Holy crap. You weren’t joking about how big he is.”

A large glass cage, usually reserved for seals, stood in one corner of the room. The bottom of the cage had been lined with a layer of sand, which had apparently been kicked up by the creature quietly whining and shifting inside of it.

The turtle within was currently laying on its side with his armored back to the two teenagers and one leg stretched at an uncomfortable angle as it seemed to be attempting to pull itself completely into the far corner of the container. A closer look told them that the turtle had been shackled, a large iron chain around its left leg prohibiting him from crawling into his shell.

“Yeah – he actually seems smaller than I remembered…” The red head hesitantly took a step forward, eyes watching as the turtle took a shuddering breath and twitched. He didn’t seem to have noticed their arrival yet – proving the recent sedative to be quite effective. “When he was moving around in the water I could have sworn he was taller than I was, but now he doesn’t even look five feet tall!”

“Tall or not, he looks kinda dead,” Casey suddenly strode forward to stand beside April and pressed one hand to the glass, tapping lightly with his knuckle. “Wake up, dude!”

“I doubt that will do anything, Casey – he’s really drugged up at the mo-”

As if on cue, the turtle jerked in its sleep and flailed momentarily in the sand, eliciting quiet shrieks of surprise from the two observers. They both leapt backwards as the turtle rolled itself onto all fours, limbs still trembling from sleep and head shaking this way and that as the creature attempted to orient itself. There was a moment of silence as he seemed to suddenly remember his predicament, and then the turtle caught sight of April and Casey.

Eyes shrinking to pinpricks, the turtle let out a squawk of terror and scrabbled backwards on his hands and rear end until the chain grew taut and he couldn’t retreat any further, chest heaving and eyes flicking in every direction as he searched for a way out. With a jolt, April watched as the turtle threw his body sideways against the glass and clawed at the walls. The laboratory room echoed with sounds of distress as the creature began to click and squawk frantically.

“Uh – do we need to go get somebody?” the dark-haired boy pressed both hands to his ears and furrowed his brow. “’Cause he doesn’t seem to be very happy about being in there!”

“We should probably get one of the lab technicians to administer another dose of sedative,” April nodded her head back towards the door, though her eyes remained on the turtle. The creature was still clicking loudly as it balled its hands into fists and beat them against the glass. “The walls should be strong enough to hold him, but he might hurt himself if he keeps freaking out!”

“Sounds good to me!”

The girl motioned for Casey to follow her, backing slowly away from the turtle and reaching out for the door handle. As they backed away, the noise seemed to falter and then suddenly -

“Help!”

April froze, her hand inches from the doorknob, and then turned to meet Casey’s round brown orbs. “Did you-?”

“Help!”

The two stared at each other silently for a heartbeat, and then slowly turned to face the panting terrapin. The creature’s amber eyes had tracked them across the room, and now locked onto April’s own eyes with an intensity she had never seen before.

“Crap,” Casey murmured under his breath. “What did you - ?”

“ _Tasukete kudasai!_ ” The turtle pressed his trembling palms against the glass, eyes round and searching as they moved to meet Casey’s. “Help! Out!”


	3. Chapter 3

“Oh my gosh.” April cleared the space between them in two steps and fell to her knees before the cage. “He can talk – you can talk!”

The creature lurched backwards as April drew near, eyes shining with pent up tears of fear and frustration. His entire frame trembled as he spoke again in a slow, raspy voice, still anxiously glancing back and forth between April and Casey. “Need out NOW. Need help – Small Brother trouble – not know where- hurt hurt - need out out out!” At the last three words, the turtle slammed his open palms against the glass again and then resumed squawking and crying out.

April placed her open palms on the glass and turned back to Casey, eyes wide. “Tell me that I wasn’t the only one who heard that.”

Casey drug both hands roughly through his hair as he rapidly shook his head. “Holy crap.”

Turning back to the turtle, April knocked on the glass again to catch his attention. The turtle was still hammering at the walls and letting out distressed screeches that made April want to clamp her hands over her ears. When he didn’t acknowledge her, the redhead chose to raise her voice and call over the noise. “’Small Brother’ – was that the other turtle I saw with you?”

Mentioning the name did the job – the turtle instantly snapped to attention and placed his own palms on the glass, eyes furrowed into an expression of startling ferocity. The claws on each hand suddenly seemed much larger when they were less than an inch away from her own. “Small Brother – where?”

April saw Casey’s reflection in the glass, his body tensed in anticipation of the creature lashing out again. “Small Brother is still out there - in the ocean. I don’t think any of the other scientists saw him.”

The turtle huffed in relief, eyes closing for a moment as his shoulders lost some of the tension they had been holding. “Brother safe. Brother safe. Good.”

The three sat in relative silence for a moment, the only sound in the room being their heavy breathing and the low whoosh of water and air being pushed through the pipes overhead.

“What the heck are we supposed to do?” the teenage boy finally muttered as he stepped forward and sunk to the floor beside April. The turtle drew back warily at his approach, but made no move to start screaming again.

“I- I don’t know.” April waved her hands uselessly. Her mind was still reeling with shock over the new development. “I don’t even know what he is at this point – there’s no procedure for this.”

“Should we tell your dad?” Casey fidgeted with the string of his hoodie and scuffed a sneaker on the linoleum, still staring at the turtle. The turtle blinked back at him and wrinkled its snout. It took April a moment to realize that not only was he listening to them, but he was comprehending what was being said, at least to a large degree.

April tried to imagine explaining the situation to her dad and the other scientists. Instantly, an image of the turtle screaming in terror as it was strapped onto an exam table and prepped for dissection entered her mind. She shook the thought aside. “I don’t think we can. Not without it leading to him…” She allowed her voice to trail off as Casey nodded in silent understanding. They watched as the turtle tensed, as if it understood their tones.

With a pitiful whine, the turtle rapped on the glass again and whimpered in such a way that sent a dagger through the teenagers’ hearts. “Need help. Need out.”

Casey suddenly leapt to his feet, causing both of his companions to jump in surprise. “You know what? Screw procedures.”

“What - ?”

The teenage boy turned to look April in the eye as she rose to her own feet, one hand still placed on the glass. His expression was filled with the same fierce determination that April had seen many times right before Casey had leapt into an argument. “This thing obviously has a family – a brother, at that! – and doesn’t deserve to be trapped like a freaking animal. I mean – yeah, he’s an animal – but it’s just not freaking right!”

“Casey –”

“- He deserves to be back with his family! And I’m sorry April, but if you disagree –”

“But I agree with you!” The girl snapped back, earning a look of surprise. April glanced back down at the cage, where the turtle had started breathing heavily again in anticipation and was looking back and forth between them. “Heck, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you’re right. I don’t care what this will do to research- he needs to be back in the ocean. It’s just not right to keep him here.”

As if on cue, several things suddenly happened at once. The lights above the door to the exam room began pulsing with a muted orange glow, causing the turtle to let out a cry of sudden agitation. Energy renewed, he leapt back at the glass and strained against the chain on his leg, eyes full of fear as he stared pleadingly at the humans. Then there was a loud click, and a hissing sound filled the room. Casey and April both took a step back, fists clenched and shoulders tensed as a clear gas began to fill the tank. Within a minute, the turtle’s whining was silenced and he sank back to the sand, eyes shut and breathing beginning to slow.

April pivoted on her heel as the gas clicked off and the lights returned to normal, her teeth clenched in anger. “C’mon, Casey. Let’s go find my dad.”

***

Of two things in his life was Doctor Kirby James O’Neil proud – his beautiful daughter, and his ability to negotiate. The pride of neither, however, could quell the rising headache that surged behind his eyes as he placed the phone back on its receiver and reached for his coffee mug. Discussions with the Board always left him feeling drained and in need of caffeine.

He raised the almost empty tin to his lips, mentally making a note to bring a second mug to work the next day, and was just beginning to take a sip when the door to his office slammed open and April raced in, closely followed by a gangly teenage boy who looked more out of place in the research building than a fish out of water. Dr. O’Neil lowered his mug automatically, his eyes moving to check the clock on the wall before he stood and moved around the desk.

“April, honey – I was just starting to wonder whether the school bus was running late.” The man smiled warmly and extended his hand towards the boy. “And am I right to believe that you are Casey Jones? April told me that she was doing homework with one of her classmates recently. It’s nice to finally have a face to put with the name.”

“Uh, yeah. You too, sir.” Casey shot a quick glance at April, brows furrowed as the two seemed to have a mental conversation, and then reached out to receive Dr. O’Neil’s outstretched hand. “We actually wanted to come talk to you about some stuff you’re doing.”

“I’m sorry?” Kirby cocked an eyebrow at this and turned to April.

“It’s about the turtle, Dad,” the girl explained. It was then that Kirby finally took a good look at his daughter. The girl’s cheeks were flushed from running, and she was trembling ever so slightly as an electric energy pulsed behind her blue eyes. “And yes, Casey knows about it.”

Dr. O’Neil raised his eyebrows in surprise and took a step back to lean against his desk. When April was this worked up, the safest procedure was to back away and allow the storm to pass. “Ok. Also, I would have preferred that you not leak information – no offense to you, lad. Is everything alright? Or wait – is it about your injuries? I was afraid that you might over-exert yourself today.” The man paused, and then turned to grab the manila file that still laid in the center of his desk, opened from the phone call. “Which reminds me – I need to make a mark on the file about the incident before I fax everything out.”

April rapidly shook her head and threw another side glance at Casey. The boy was dancing from one foot to the other, obviously itching to speak, but waiting for April to finish. “No no, I’m fine, but – wait – what? What are you faxing?”

“The turtle’s file, of course,” Dr. O’Neil tapped the folder excitedly. “I suppose April has explained the basics of the case to you, Casey. Well, we took blood samples this morning, and the creature’s biological DNA almost perfectly matches that of an average loggerhead sea turtle – which is clearly not what you would expect upon observing it, right? Upon closer inspection, however, we were then able to see that there were varied sequences of genetic code that had been mutated– as if this creature were once an average turtle and then something external happened to it that managed to permanently alter its very DNA!”

“But – what could do that?” April’s hands were still balled into fists, but her shoulders lowered slightly as she cocked her head in confusion. “That doesn’t make any sense.” Casey nodded half-heartedly from behind her and offered a small ‘ _it doesn’t?_ ’.

“That’s what’s so remarkable – it shouldn’t be possible for something to change DNA! It would be one thing if the turtle had been born with a mutation in its DNA that caused it to develop like this, but based on what we saw there was a specific moment – likely very early on in life or perhaps while still in its incubation stage – that traumatically and dramatically changed it!” Dr. O’Neil waved his free hand wildly as he spoke, making gestures that Casey immediately recognized as being something April would do. “Whatever happened, it’s clear that this creature is truly one of a kind! I told the Board of our findings, and they ordered that we transfer the turtle to their main base immediately for further examination and dissection. Apparently they have several scientists in the head department who specialize in bizarre cases of this sort, so they were highly interested in the acquisition. Right now they’re currently negotiating a sum to pay for Hamato Laboratory’s discovery and handling of the subject.”

“They’re going to dissect him?” Casey’s voice was thin and angry when he spoke again, though Mr. O’Neil seemed too excited by the topic to notice. Even so, April elbowed him sharply and the teenage boy quickly closed his mouth, though it was obvious that he was still mentally fuming.

“Of course. This is clearly a large moment in marine biology – if something occurred to make the creature like this, we have to know what caused it in order to prevent the same thing from happening to other innocent creatures.”

“When are they moving him?” April suddenly interjected with a tight smile. “I had… hoped that they were going to be handling that here. I wanted to watch the procedure.”

Dr. O’Neil hesitated in his answer, staring curiously between his daughter and the boy at her side. “The Board seemed really eager to get started, so I’d imagine a transport is likely already on its way. If they don’t stop for the evening, I’d assume they’ll arrive around midnight.”

April’s smile tightened, but she forced an accepting nod and wave. “Man, that sucks. Okay. Well, we’re heading to the library now – got a big test tomorrow. See you at dinner. Bye, Dad!” Without another word, the girl suddenly grabbed Casey tightly by the arm and dragged the struggling boy out the door.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. O’Neil!” Casey called out as the two disappeared.

“Err, you too, son!” Kirby stood unmoving, suddenly alone in his office and pondering the meaning of what had just happened. He briefly considered calling April’s cell phone and asking what in the world was going on, until the desk set flashed the Board’s caller ID and began to ring again. With a tired sigh, the man sank back into his chair and reached for his empty coffee mug.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this chapter, I've officially passed the point where I stepped away from the fic back in like 2016! :D There's one more chapter fully written at this point, and I'm currently working on chapter six - so stay tuned!

He awakens, head spinning and shaking with disorientation for what feels like the hundredth time in the past 24 hours.  
Had it only been only a day? It felt like much longer. Without being able to check the sun, he wasn’t sure how much time was actually passing between bouts of unconsciousness; all he knew was that he had done this several times before. The dead weight of his limbs, the sloshing feeling in his stomach, and the way that the ground spun beneath him had started to feel almost routine.

Blinking heavily, he shook his head and then immediately clapped a palm to his mouth as his stomach rolled in protest. No – he couldn’t be sick here; the thin layer of sand underneath him was not nearly deep enough to bury waste, and he didn’t think he could mentally handle the addition of another strong smell in this already overwhelming environment. Better to wait it out.

The turtle sighed, pressing his forehead into the sand and keeping a palm clamped to his mouth as he slowly took stock. He was laying on his side in the corner of the clear prison, shell to the rest of the room and limbs curled as close to his chest as possible. The metal-cold-hard-rope was still clamped onto one of his legs, forcing him to twist his hips awkwardly so as to remain in this position. The taste of blood lingered in his mouth, making him wonder if he had bitten his tongue the last time he had been dragged into unconsciousness. Or perhaps They had done something to him? All he knew was that everything hurt to varying degree, the worst of which being his head. It felt as if someone had pried open his skull and molded his brain between their palms.

Once he felt certain that the meager contents of his stomach would remain in place, the turtle slowly eased into a sitting position with one side of his body pressed against the clear wall. The surface felt cool and slick on his skin, causing him to shiver as he cast weary eyes around the room.

His prison was still dimly lit this time, which was a blessing in some ways. He vaguely remembered waking up one of the first times, when the room had been flooded with harsh lighting that hurt his eyes and made him want to bury his head in the sand. The sensations were confusing – the sand was unnaturally coarse on his skin, the light above him did not give off any warmth, and everything was just wrong wrong wrong wrong.

There had been Humans in the room at that point – tall ones in white pelts that stared at him and used Spoken Human Words that he wasn’t conscious enough to understand. They’d kept their distance at first, slowly moving back and forth through his hazy vision while every cell in his body screamed at him to run. He had been so tired and confused at that point that he just wanted to close his eyes and go back to sleep, but then several of the Humans suddenly stepped forward and opened the wall nearest to him.

His mind had jolted fully awake at that point, though his body remained motionless on the ground. He remembered wanting to back away, chest heaving with panicked desperation as he begged his limbs to move beneath him. The Humans moved quickly and spoke in low voices, almost as if trying to soothe him before one reached out and pressed his head into the sand. He remembered trying to scream as they turned his face away from them, but the only sound he could manage was a high-pitched whine. He gasped in pain as several sharp objects were shoved into his shoulder and thigh, but within seconds the Humans drew back clutching containers of red liquid – his blood.

They returned and repeated the process several other times after that – sometimes when he was awake but too delirious to do much but lean away and whimper. Other times, they waited until another round of gas stole him from consciousness and then crept in. He only knew that something had happened based on the dull ache that ran up and down both arms and the foul scent of Human clinging to his skin.

After the fourth or fifth time – or maybe it had been more? – he began to question whether this was it. Father had always warned him and Brothers to fear Humans, saying that they would likely be killed on sight if caught. Was that what was going to happen next? Was this how he was going to spend whatever was left of his life? Trapped in a small, cold box and being repeatedly gassed and poked and prodded by the creatures he had been raised to fear? And what of Small Brother – was he trapped elsewhere in this prison, undergoing the same fate?

The last thought made his stomach violently roll again.

A small, whining keel had clawed its way up his throat as he wrapped sore arms around himself and started to rock, the metal-cold-hard-rope digging at the skin of his ankle with each movement. Small Brother gone. Brave Brother and Strong Brother gone. Water gone. Gone gone gone alone gone.

“He needs to be back in the ocean!” Red Girl’s voice suddenly floated through his cloudy mind. Yes, that was it.

He’d been angry at first, when he awoke to find her staring back at him. He’d gone against instinct and years of teaching when he had first spotted her, clearly in distress and tangling with a squid that seemed intent to make her his meal. Even Small Brother, with his always-happy-to-help attitude hesitated at the sight of a Human in what they’d always considered to be a safe place. But she was so small and scared, and it only took a moment before they leapt into action.

Had she returned to gloat at his capture? Or to finish him off?

Either way, the fear and anger became too much and he had panicked. He remembered crying out in Family Tongue as he beat on the wall, crying in pain, crying for his brothers, crying for anything that could get him out of this wretched place.

What he hadn’t expected was the equally scared and concerned reaction he received. Rather than reach in and take more of his blood or gawk like the other Humans, Red Girl’s face had creased in worry and she had backed up with palms in the air. Fear scent radiated from her, and he found himself stunned into momentary silence. She had had the same expression when tangling in the squid’s limbs, being trapped and slowly suffocated. She saw him as a threat.

And so he’d taken a chance – a last ditch effort to communicate that this time he was the one in need of rescuing.

She and Boy Human had seemed to understand, talking excitedly between each other in rapid tones that he had to concentrate to decipher. But then the sleeping gas had come again, and when he next woke, the room was empty.

The turtle rubbed at his eyes and inhaled slowly, forcing his body to relax. How long ago had that been? There was no sun or moon here, so he wasn’t even sure how long he had been asleep this time. But they had said that they would help him get home, right? So they had to be coming back eventually.

At least now he knew that Small Brother was safe. The simple knowledge of this lifted weight off of his shoulders and made it easier to breathe. If he couldn’t find a way home, at least his family wouldn’t be losing two Brothers – they’d already had to deal with the loss of Father many moons before.

Voices from outside of his prison suddenly wove their way into his thoughts, and the turtle perked up. Was that them? Had Girl and Boy come back for him?

“Here here! You come back!” he clicked, excitement too great to bother translating into Spoken Human Words. Forcing himself to ignore the dizziness that still clouded his mind, he pulled himself to his knees and beat on the wall eagerly. Across the room, the door handle jiggled and he heard a beep. “You come back help Clever Brother help go back to ocean Home-”

Then the door swung open, and in stepped a red-furred human… but not Red Girl.

***

“It’s bigger than I thought.”

Dr. O’Neil nodded nervously, his eyes focusing first on the turtle and then back at the two solidly built men standing behind him. Between them and the wild animal in the room, he couldn’t help but feel more comfortable with the animal. Muscular arms peeked out from under t-shirts bearing “ _Oroku Inc._ ” nametags, signifying the men as “Anton” and “Ivan”. Across the room, the creature barked nervously, dropping to its rear end and scuttling to the far end of the glass containment. “Actually, that’s another interesting detail! Based on the blood tests that we ran, the specimen appears to have DNA most similar to that of a loggerhead turtle, which typically grow to be approximately three feet in length and between 250-300 pounds. Upon arrival, we measured him as being four foot ten inches and 219 pounds – which is significantly longer than most loggerheads, but not proportionally heavier. I would love to be there for the study and dissection – I’m assuming his bones are thinner in order to compensate for his length and allow easier navigation –”

The taller of the men – a lanky black character apparently named Anton - raised a hand to cut Kirby off as he began to speak. He spoke in cool, lilted English with a slight Japanese accent hiding behind his words. “Yes, I’m sure Dr. Stockman and the boss will be grateful to know that he was in such great hands. As I’m sure you can tell by our early arrival, they’re eagerly awaiting him back at the lab.”

Kirby nodded, blushing lightly. “Of course, my apologies. It’s just not every day you see a creature such as this – I’m sure that you understand. Our team has been buzzing since we discovered him out in the bay.”

“I’m sure,” Anton nodded again, though his half-lidded eyes betrayed a genuine lack of interest. Across the room, the turtle let out a shuddering breath. “Speaking of which, I assume that you recorded the coordinates where he was located?”

“Yes, of course.” The redheaded scientist turned a page on his clipboard and tapped it in affirmation. “All of our findings and details about the retrieval were transmitted earlier today, so Dr. Stockman should be able to access everything we know.”

“Excellent.” The laboratory assistants turned to each other, speaking in Japanese for a moment while Kirby awkwardly toyed at the edges of his paperwork and cursed his lacking language skills. When they turned back around, the shorter man spoke up in a thick Russian accent.

“Should he not be sedated? The boss said that there could be a risk of violence, and that he didn’t want to take any chances.”

“Yes, well, um,” Kirby glanced back down at his notes nervously. “We’ve attempted to keep him sedated throughout the day by administering doses of sevoflurane, but his body has been burning through the medication at an unprecedented rate. Until more is known about his biology, I’m extremely hesitant to consider administering such heavy doses – they could have adverse effects on liver function, cause neurotoxicity –”

“Relax, Dr. O’Neil,” Anton interrupted, a smirk tugging at his lips. “The good doctor sent us with a back up, just in case we ran into any issues. Care to illustrate, Ivan?”

Ivan grunted as he reached into his uniform pocket and withdrew a small, circular device that made Kirby gasp.

“Wait – is that a shock collar? I – well, I really don’t think that’s a good idea -”

“It is… similar,” Ivan interjected. He was more hesitant as he spoke, taking several seconds to weigh his words before speaking them.

With careful hands, he lifted a latch on the side of the collar and pressed to adjust its size. Once he seemed satisfied that the circumference was about as big around as the turtle’s neck, the man reached back into his pocket and retrieved a small egg-shaped remote, then simultaneously pressed a button on each piece. Several high-pitched beeps echoed through the room, followed by a low buzzing sound. “The boss had Dr. Stockman create this in order to induce temporary paralysis on larger creatures. As long as the device is activated, the wearer will remain conscious, but unable to move. It makes transportation much easier, as well as helps with certain studies. I shall show you.”

The two lab assistants stepped towards the cage in unison, eliciting another bark of fear from the turtle, and pulled open the door. The creature yelped as the men closed in, throwing out his arms in protest and letting out a warning snarl that sent chills down Kirby’s spine. Before he had a chance to advise them to retreat, both men stepped into the cage and then leapt back, Ivan shaking his hand and cursing in Japanese. _“You little monster – he bit me!”_

Anton surged forward, using one leg to brace himself and the other to deliver a swift kick to the center of the turtle’s plastron. The creature gasped, falling heavily back onto his carapace and stirring up a cloud of sand as Anton continued to firmly press into his chest. The turtle snarled in frustration, arms desperately alternating between tearing at the thick fabric of Anton’s pants and trying to keep Ivan’s reaching arms at bay. “Come on now, don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”

“Gentlemen –!”

Before the turtle could do any serious damage, Ivan lunged forward and snapped the collar around their prey’s neck. The turtle let out a panicked yelp and bit down again, this time sinking gapped teeth into the nearest hand and locking his jaw.

“Yeaugh!” the Russian man bellowed and shook the injured arm in pain, causing the turtle’s head to whip violently back and forth but refusing to release his hold. “Anton – get it off of me!”

“Give me that –” the black man lunged forward and snatched the remote from his partner’s flailing hands. With one push of a button, the turtle suddenly went slack and dropped limply to the ground beneath them. His eyes remained wide open, darting around in confusion.

“Stupid beast,” Ivan growled and kicked at the turtle’s side, eliciting a yelp but nothing else. His hand was already oozing blood, which steadily dripped down onto the turtle’s motionless form. “I’ll make sure that they don’t give you anesthesia, just for that. Or maybe I can just take care of you myself on the way over – how do you like the taste of lead?”

“I doubt he has any idea what you’re saying,” Anton rolled his eyes, then turned to Kirby. “Where’s the loading cart that you brought him in with?”

“Now wait – hold on just one second,” the scientist shook his head, brows furrowed as took a step towards the men. “This is all wrong – I understand that you gentlemen have a job to do and I’m sure you’re lovely people, but as a biologist it is my responsibility to ensure that each and every creature we work with is treated with the utmost dignity and respect. As such, I can’t just let the two of you waltz in here and –”

Kirby suddenly felt something press against his chest and stopped short, his breath hitching in his throat.

“I don’t think you understand, Old Man,” Anton pressed the barrel of his gun forcefully into Kirby’s chest and growled. “Our boss wants this creature more than life itself and has already paid you more than you are worth for it, so we will continue to do with it exactly as we please. Now,” he jerked his head and Ivan roughly grabbed the paralyzed creature under its arms. “Are you going to help us get it into the van, or what?”


	5. Chapter 5

“Okay, you can’t seriously expect me to believe that you’ve never snuck out of the house,” Casey rapped his knuckles on the cracked leather steering wheel and tossed a glance towards April. He’d given the girl rides in the Jonesmobile before – his affectionate name for the Jeep that was older than the two of them combined – but this was different. The two could usually listen to music or crack jokes while they were driving through Osaka, free from the stress of life for just a few moments. But now her whole body looked tense, like a coiled spring about to break free and launch out onto the dark highway. She’d been like this since they had left the lab earlier that afternoon, her expressions twisting tighter with each hour as they formulated a plan. “I mean, I know that you’re a goody-two-shoes but come on. Nobody is _that_ perfect.”

“I’m serious,” the redhead insisted, though she didn’t meet Casey’s probing gaze. Her eyes were instead focused on the vibrating, glowing laptop perched on her thighs as she rapidly typed in lines of data. “Besides, where would I even go?”

“Uh, wherever you wanted? Like you could, I don’t know… go swim with whatever weird fish your dad is studying? And then you could be back before he even realized that you were gone!”

She snorted, her expression momentarily relaxing just enough to make Casey smile in approval. “Yeah, right. My dad is way too much of a nervous wreck for that to go well. The second he noticed that I was missing he would call the police or something.”

“Not if you had an excuse like tonight, Ms. Wild Woman.”

“That’s different,” April finally looked up from her laptop and gave Casey an unimpressed look, the tightness in her body returning. “I’m _helping_ you to _study_ at your house, remember? Which we _did_ , so it’s technically not lying.”

He gave a noncommittal shrug, eyes shifting back to the road as he upped the brightness on the headlights. Streetlights had started to become fewer and farther between as they turned off of the freeway and passed a sign marking the entrance to Hamato Lab’s property. Despite how brightly lit and colorful it looked during the day, during the night he couldn’t help but see the massive building complex as a haunted maze. “Whatever helps you to sleep at night. Anyways, we should be at our destination in just a few minutes.”

“Awesome,” April turned back to her computer and entered another few keystrokes. “In that case, let’s run through the plan just one more time. The last of the main staff left at eight and the transport truck is supposed to arrive around midnight, so someone on staff will have to be there to unlock everything about an hour prior. Since it’s 9:30 now, that means we have a little over an hour to get in –”

“And then we’ll use your keycard, you’ll mess with any security cameras we run into using your laptop, and bada bing bada boom we’ve got ourselves a turtle,” Casey interrupted, taking a hard left to direct their vehicle onto an ‘employees only’ driveway. “Yeah, yeah, we’ve been over this like a hundred times today- you’ve been repeating yourself all afternoon.”

A pregnant pause fell over the car, and Casey allowed his eyes to momentarily flick towards April to make sure that he hadn’t gone deaf. Based on the color that her face was turning, he suddenly wished he had.

“How can you be so flippant about this?” April snapped her laptop closed, voice raising as she tossed it into the floorboards and turned sharply in her seat. Without taking his eyes back off of the road, Casey could already tell that she was strongly considering smacking the hockey mask off of his head and possibly beating him with it. “We’re literally about to commit a CRIME by breaking into a government lab and STEALING one of the subjects! HECK, I still can’t believe that I talked myself into this? What’s my dad going to say when he finds out? And heck, what’s the government going to say? Neither of us are actually citizens of Japan – are they just going to fling us out into the ocean and be like ‘swim back to America, you dirty criminals’? I have my whole freaking life ahead of me, and I’m about to throw it away so that I can save some random turtle? Who does that?!”

Casey waited silently as she vented, before finally taking his eyes off of the road to face her. By now they were approaching Hamato Lab’s parking garage, a four-story concrete structure that spiraled down into depths of the Earth. Casey pulled past the guard gate, absently noticing that the crossing bar was raised before he turned left and started their descent into the belly of the beast. Their destination would be the last level, which opened onto the same floor that the creature was being held. “If we don’t do anything, they’re going to eventually kill him, right?”

“… Right.”

“So screw the rules. If we’re arrested or something, we can deal with that then – but as long as I’m able to help, I’m going to. Casey Jones doesn’t go down without a fight.”

The car fell silent while April hesitated, her shoulders still tense as she considered his words. The Jeep had just rounded a corner onto the third level when she finally let out a huff and turned back in her seat. “I’d still rather not be arrested.”

“Eh, you’d look nice in a jumpsuit.”

This time she did smack the mask off of his head, eliciting a yelp of surprise from the teenage boy.

“What?! It was a compliment!”

April opened her mouth to respond, her eyes sparkling with renewed energy, when she suddenly lunged across the center console and slapped at the headlights control. “Shoot shoot shoot – stop the car!”

Casey immediately slammed on the brake, bringing the car to a lurching stop right as they were about to turn onto the lowest level. The Jeep rocked forwards, front tires already gripping the incline and sending half a dozen empty soda bottles rolling towards the front seats. April grunted in surprise as her seatbelt locked in place, just barely saving her from tumbling into the floorboards alongside the trash.

She’d spoken not a moment too soon – the door that they had been planning on entering through was propped open, sending a long beam of white light into the darkness of the parking garage and illuminating a solid black van parked in the handicap space. The car rumbled quietly, headlights turned off but taillights signaling that it was still cranked and running.

The two teenagers exchanged wide-eyed looks before Casey slowly reached for the gear shift, allowing April to move back into her seat before he put the car in reverse. Eyes trained on the door for movement, Casey backed the Jeep off of the incline and into a shadowy corner of the parking garage. When no alarms went off, and nobody suddenly exploded through the door in pursuit, he killed the engine and whisper-hissed. “I thought you said they weren’t supposed to be arriving until midnight?”

“Well apparently they came early!” April hissed back between gritted teeth. She unbuckled her seatbelt and gripped the ceiling bar as she pulled herself into a crouching position. “Crap- what do we do now?”

Unbuckling his own seatbelt, Casey twisted to reach behind his seat. “Here, take one of my hockey sticks – or I think I have a baseball bat-”

“Are you crazy? We are NOT going to beat up scientists with hockey sticks!”

“But –”

Before he could argue further, the sound of footsteps on the lower level brought them both to silence.

“Get the door.”

“I’ve got it, I’ve got it,” A middle-aged man in a lab coat stepped meekly into the garage, his head ducked as he went to open the back of the van. “But I still think there are better ways of handling –”

“Just get it, Doctor.”

The scientist nodded and moved quickly, then cast a nervous glance back over his shoulder that allowed the limited light to illuminate his features.

April gasped and pressed her palms against the window. “Oh my gosh – Dad!”

Two more figures emerged from the hallway, nearly blocking out the light with their massive forms. The first, a tall black man wearing dark glasses, brushed roughly past Dr. O’Neil and climbed into the driver’s seat. The second, moving a big more slowly, was a large white man carrying the creature over his shoulder.

Both teens gasped. The turtle’s arms and legs swung limply as the man moved, uninhibited by chains or any form of restraint. His head bobbed against his captor’s shoulder, keeping pace with each step, but not showing any sign protest or even an attempt to get into a more comfortable position. In fact, he showed no signs of life at all.

Casey leaned across the center console, one hand on April’s shoulder and growled. “They killed him.”

April’s breath hitched in her throat as she rapidly shook her head. She leaned forward, pressing her forehead against the window and straining to make out the details on the turtle’s face. “No – they wouldn’t. They couldn’t. Dad wouldn’t have let them just kill him.”

“That’s what they were planning on doing in the first place, April – that’s why we’re here!” Casey balled his free hand into a fist and pounded it on the dashboard. “We were too late.”

“No, wait,” April placed a hand over Casey’s, urging him to be quiet. “Listen!”

The two teenagers fell silent again, watching as the large man stooped down at the rear of the van. The way that their car was positioned blocked April and Casey from being able to see straight into the vehicle, but they could tell based on movement that he had set the turtle down and was messing with something back there. Dr. O’Neil stood a few feet away, nervously rubbing his arm and throwing anxious glances into the car.

“T-that cage is fairly small for a creature his size – and he should really have some source of water. If it would help, we have several transport trucks that would be better suited for relocating specimens. If you could just wait until morning, I could personally deliver-”

The man in the driver’s seat grunted and rested an elbow on the edge of his open window. “As I’ve already stated, the boss is not a patient man. He wants the turtle in his lab yesterday and does not care to be kept waiting.”  
“But surely he-”

“You’ve done enough, Dr. O’Neil,” the second man said, finishing what he was doing and slamming the back of the van shut. “The specimen is now our responsibility, and we will do with it as our boss sees fit. The check for Hamato Labs should be arriving soon, so how about you just go back inside and pretend as if this night never happened?”

April watched as her dad shrank slightly, clearly still not willing to give up on the issue but understanding that he was outnumbered. “Just… please be careful on the drive.”

“Of course,” the man clapped a massive hand on Kirby’s shoulder, nearly bowling the scientist over, and squeezed once before heading towards the passenger side of the van. “We wouldn’t dare do otherwise.”

Blinding headlights erupted from the front of the car, flooding the parking garage with light and sending Kirby stumbling back into the building. With a rev of its engine, the van lurched forward. Casey yelped and pushed down on April’s shoulder, forcing the two of them below the sweeping beams as the vehicle slowly climbed the ramp to their level. The two kids remained low, breath held as the spotlights slowly passed over their heads. Time seemed to slow down for a moment, and then the van’s engine revved loudly and took off with a squeal of tires.

As soon as she heard the car moving on the next level, April scrambled back into a sitting position and grabbed for her seatbelt. “He’s alive – follow them!”

“On it!” Casey pushed himself upright and slammed his keys back into the ignition, bringing the Jonesmobile roaring to life. “Hold on to your butt!”


	6. Chapter 6

Being constantly together meant that there wasn’t always a need for names in his family; no matter where they went or what was happening, a brother was always within earshot. Besides, surviving as a group often called for one to put aside the concept of ‘I’ and ‘me’, and instead focus on the importance of ‘us and ‘we’.

Us, Brothers. We, Father and Sons.

Individual names were thought of as precious things to be shared. To be called by name was one of the most intimate ways of being identified – it was a way of telling the other that they in particular were important and cherished and held a special place in the speaker’s heart. Being given a name was a special gift, and to be able to give someone their name was an even greater honor.

Father had given them their original names when they were still very small, cooing the sounds as they burrowed into his worn white fur and drank in the warm, safe scent of each other.

_Small. Brave. Strong. Clever._

The chirped sounds were a reminder of his love for them - a verbal affirmation that he held them dear.

Once Father had passed, those names became something almost sacred in their family and were reserved for only the most special of occasions. They were spoken primarily in times of overwhelming emotion, such as during a particularly harsh winter when Strong Brother brought home a catch large enough to feed the whole family for many suns. The turtles had gathered around him that night, churring happily and celebrating their brother’s great and likely life-saving accomplishment.

Other occasions were less joyous but just as intimate, such as on nights where one of them startled awake from a terrible nightmare – an event that happened more frequently since Father’s passing. Brothers would huddle around their frightened member and press close, filling their ears with whispered names and reminding them that they were safe, they were home, and they were loved.

At this moment he yearned for nothing more than to be drawn into one of those tight embraces, cool scales and warm breath tickling his skin as the sound of his name chased away the surrounding monsters.

_“Brothers here, Clever. Clever Brother safe.”_

He blinked his eyes rapidly – one of the few body parts he could still move – as tears blurred his vision and began to roll down his face. The cold, hard object that had been clamped around his neck vibrated softly, a cruel imitation of the cool skin and hummed tones he was desperate for. The turtle bit down on the inside of his cheek and roughly chewed in an attempt to distract himself. No, he couldn’t cry yet, no matter how much he wanted to. For now he had to stay alert. If death was to come, he wanted to face it and be brave. That’s what Father would have wanted.

An acrid scent filled his nostrils as the ground swinging beneath him slowly transitioned from light to dark, and the harsh lighting above was replaced with a handful of flickering orange lights. The turtle let out a soft grunt as they came to an abrupt stop, his momentum continuing to carry his head and arms forward until they collided against the human called Ivan’s back. Before he could process what was happening, the hands holding him shifted to grip the edges of his shell and he was twisted around to face his captor.

Ivan stared down at him for a moment, his brown eyes seeming to note the turtle’s lolling head and the tear tracks that ran up either side of his face before he smirked. “Alright, in ya go.”

The turtle felt himself being turned again and then he was shoved into a small, dark place. He gasped softly, eyes flicking around to take in the new, colder enclosure. This one was much different than the other prison – it was much smaller, offering him only a few inches of movement on every side, and made of a shiny silver material that looped together to form an interlocking web. Several other prisons lined the one that he was being placed in, signifying that there was room for other prisoners if necessary.

The icy floor beneath his skin vibrated rhythmically as a mental image rushed to his mind, causing his already twisting stomach to gurgle a warning. _No. Brothers safe. Brothers not here._

“Th-that cage is fairly small for a creature his size – and he should really have some source of water-” the red furred man that they had called “Doctor” leaned around Ivan as he attempted to peer into the silver prison. Waves of pity emanated from the human’s eyes, so similar to the expressions Red Girl and Boy Human had given him.

The turtle squeezed his eyes shut, wanting to shake his head and erase the memories from his mind. They hadn’t come back for him. Father had been right about Humans – they only sought to hurt and destroy. Their promises and looks of pity meant nothing.

All of the sudden a hand reached out and gripped the back of his neck, causing his eyes to snap back open. A warning hiss bubbled out from the back of his throat.

“Oh hush,” Ivan tapped sharply on the bridge of the creature’s snout, then leaned into the touch as he shoved the creature further back in the cage and swung the door shut. The turtle could still see through the metal links as Ivan latched the cage and reached into his pelt to retrieve what looked like a large gray egg. The man tapped the shell once, triggering a low beep from the object around the turtle’s neck. He gulped, bracing for the worst, and then barked in surprise as a wave of tingling warmth began to slowly wash over his body. It was an odd, hot sensation – like the feeling of urinating after a cold swim – but it was welcome. The turtle shook his head and gave a small sign of relief as life began to creep back into his limbs… until Ivan clicked the egg a second time and the weight came crashing back down.

“Eh, better keep you still for now. Just in case.” The large man twirled the egg between his fingers for a moment, looking thoughtful, then tucked the device into an inner pocket on the van door. Once he was certain it was secure, Ivan grabbed the doors and looked back over his shoulder. “You’ve done enough, Dr. O’Neil,”

The doors slammed shut with an air of finality, plunging him into darkness and making him whimper softly.

Seconds later a roar screamed at him from every side, and then a sudden jolt of movement sent him crashing into the cage door. He clenched his now bruised jaw as the rumbling continued to slide him back and forth, eyes blinking rapidly to adjust and then locking onto the door pocket that shifted in and out of his line of sight. He hummed in determination. That was it – his ticket to freedom. He needed that egg.

***

Okay, so it turned out that car chases were a bit difficult when you didn’t have a plan and didn’t want to alert the other car.

The Jonesmobile had exploded from the parking garage with a vengeance, spitting up gravel in its wake, only for Casey to quickly second guess his actions – a rare occasion and one to be noted – and slam on the brakes. He killed the headlights, essentially casting a cloak of invisibility over the Jeep, and waited impatiently for the van to put a bit more distance between them before gunning the engine. The two vehicles weaved their way through Hamato Lab’s property, the Jeep’s headlights staying dark until they emerged onto the freeway. There weren’t many other cars out at this time of night, but it was just enough for the teens to be able to blend into traffic without tipping off their target.

“We need a plan – is there a rest stop or something coming up? Maybe we can wait until they stop and confront them then?” April leaned down to retrieve her laptop from the floorboards and started to pull up a map of the highway. “I’m not sure where exactly Oroku Inc. is located, but I know it’s at least several hours away; they’ll have to pull over at some point to-”

“And then what? They’ll stop to get some Funyuns and we’ll break into the van?” Casey tapped his blinker as they changed lanes, moving the Jonesmobile one lane closer to the van and pressing on the accelerator. The Jeep rumbled beneath them as they powered forward. “As much fun as that sounds, I don’t think it’ll work – one of the goons will probably stay behind to watch the car.”

“Ugh, you’re right,” the redhead moved her hands to her face and rubbed her temples vigorously as if to stimulate brain activity. “Okay, okay. Did they lock the back of the van before they drove off?”

Casey shrugged, keeping his eyes on the road as the van signaled right and began to change lanes. “I don’t know – you had a better vantage point than I did.”

“I don’t _think_ they did, but I’m not one hundred percent sure. But if we can get them both away from the car for a bit maybe one of us could get in through the back and pull him out?”

“Hmmm…” the boy hummed, impatiently drumming his fingers on the steering wheel as he thought.

Ahead of them, the van signaled once more and began angling towards the nearest off ramp. Casey waited for half a moment before doing the same. He’d never driven on this part of the coastal highway before, but he could tell at a glance that the traffic was a lot less dense on the upcoming side street – meaning that there would be less cover and the goons would quickly catch on to the fact that they were being followed. If they wanted to take advantage of the element of surprise, they needed to act soon.

“How good are your acting skills?”

April blinked in confusion. “My what?”

“I have an idea. Just follow my lead – and brace yourself.”

Before April could ask any more questions, Casey jammed his foot against the gas pedal and the car rocketed forward like a sugar-high child released into Disney World. The girl shrieked in surprise, hand swatting at the roof as she grabbed for the ceiling bar and held on tight. The Jeep careened onto the off ramp, narrowly missing the siderail as they powered down to the lower level. Streetlights whipped by, illuminating the inside of the car in photographic bursts. Casey’s crazy, wild-eyed grin. April’s confused but determined resolve. The gap between them and the van began to close.

50 feet.

40 feet.

30 feet.

“Casey-!” April braced herself, teeth gritted and eyes squeezed shut as she prepared for what was sure to be a colossal collision. But then, without warning, Casey jerked the wheel and they blew past their target. April pried an eye open just in time to see the van whip past and start to shrink in their rearview mirror. “What the heck are you doing – we need to be behind them!”

“Just trust me – I saw this in a movie once!”

Once Casey seemed to be satisfied with the distance between them and the other vehicle – at least ten car lengths – he threw his right arm in front of April and slammed on the brakes.

Tires screamed in protest, immediately chorused by the voices of the Jeep’s passengers. Casey’s left hand gripped the steering wheel, fighting to keep the car under control as it skidded from side to side. A second screech joined the cacophony of noise, and April squeezed both eyes shut again as she waited for the impact that never came.

Then, with a crunch of gravel, everything stopped moving.

The two teens slumped forward in their seats, chests heaving against their seatbelts as they attempted to steady their racing hearts. As soon as she was sure that they were still alive, April turned her head and gave a snort at the shell-shocked expression painted across Casey’s face. “You good?”

The boy moved slowly, prying a white-knuckled hand off of the steering wheel and slowly patting it across his face and body in search of injuries. “I… I think so. You?”

“Yeah, I’m good,” April closed her eyes in relief and nodded breathlessly, then turned sharply in her seat as she threw a punch to Casey’s shoulder. “What the heck was that?”

Casey recoiled, color flowing back into his pale face as he attempted to dodge her flailing fists. “I have a plan – I told you, just trust me!”

“Trust you? After you tried to kill us? Boy I-”

“You call that crap driving?” A voice boomed from behind them, followed by the slam of a car door being kicked open. April tensed, eyes flicking to the rearview mirror. Both of the men they had seen at the lab emerged from the van, looking every bit as shaken and angry as she felt.

“Like I said – follow my lead!” Casey grabbed April’s hand and squeezed once as he hissed his words. Without any further explanations, the teenage boy unbuckled his seatbelt and threw himself out the car door. He started speaking even before his feet had touched the ground, voice pitching into a pitiful and unsure tone as he turned to the approaching goons. “I am _so_ sorry, sirs! I don’t know what happened – I was just driving along and all of the sudden I lost control of the wheel! Are you two alright?”

Now that they had headlights and streetlights to illuminate the situation playing out, April was able to give the Oroku Inc. employees a once over in the rearview mirror. They were definitely enormous – both solidly built men each standing at least six feet tall and towering over even Casey’s lanky form. She squinted, eyes straining to read their nametags as they passed the Jeep’s bumper and continued to move closer. Anton and Ivan. Those certainly didn’t sound like any Japanese names she’d ever heard – maybe they were transfers to Japan, like she and her father? Then again, these guys didn’t really look the part of well-educated scientists – more like club bouncers that had been handed official nametags and set loose.

“I think that something is wrong with the flux capacitor – I heard it making noise earlier this morning and thought to myself: ‘Self, you need to get this fixed’ and by golly look where that got me now.” The men continued to stalk forward, shoulders hunched and not speaking as they got within an arm’s reach of Casey. The boy stepped backwards, a nervous chuckle escaping his lips as he continued to ramble.

Okay, this didn’t look good. Time to step in.

Taking a deep breath, April pushed herself through the passenger side door and did her best put on a mask of nervous innocence. “Oh yes, I hope that we didn’t scare you two gentlemen!”

Both mens’ heads whipped around to face her, as if just realizing that there had been a second person in the Jeep. They glanced at each other, eyes sharing a quick conversation, and then Anton gave her a tight-lipped smile. “Not at all, Miss. We were just checking to make sure that the driver of this car was alright – you were driving a bit erratically back there.”

“That’s because my girlfriend really has to pee!” Casey interjected. “We were speeding to get to the nearest gas station.”

April blinked, taking the moment of temporary darkness to roll her eyes back into her head before nodding and crossing her legs awkwardly. “Err, yeah. I really gotta… go.”

The bigger of the men blushed and glanced between the two teenagers. “Oh. Um, well then if you two are okay, we’ll let you go on your way-”

“No!” Casey and April both yelped at the same time, startling the two men and catching each other off guard.

“I really need help to get my car running again, and you can’t leave us stranded out here!” the teenage boy gestured towards the hood of his car and shrugged helplessly. “I totally suck at cars – I mean, look what happened! If I don’t get this fixed, someone else might come along hurt us or something and then I’ll have to tell the cops what happened and –”

“Alright, alright, we’ll give it a quick look,” the black man interjected with another tight smile, though his eyes betrayed a deep aggravation with the turn of events. “Ivan, you’re good with cars, aren’t you?”

“Good enough,” the white man shrugged and started to roll up his sleeves.

“Thank you so much, gentlemen, we really appreciate this,” Casey gave a small bow as the two men moved to the front of the Jeep and started to raise the hood. Before they could get started, he turned back to April and continued to speak in his lilting, false voice. “It’s pretty quiet out here, Babe. How about you go behind these nice men’s car and see if you can find somewhere to take care of business? I think their van will block you from the road.”

April nodded. Okay, maybe Casey knew what he was doing after all. “Okay, Babe. Try not to miss me too much while I’m gone.”

Casey gave a wide grin, his eyes glimmering with amusement. “Impossible.”

Before he could continue playing along and dragging things out, April turned and slowly started to make her way into the darkness. The van was still running, making her cross her fingers and pray that the back of the car would still be unlocked. If it wasn’t, she wasn’t sure how she could go about stealing the keys from the cabin without alerting Anton and Ivan.

From behind her, she heard a shouted “DUDE SHE’S PEEING, DON’T LOOK!” and bit back a snort. Bonus points for dedication on Casey’s part.

Moments later Casey’s voice resumed its awkward tone, assuring her that the goons had turned their attention back to the car. “So I always forget - how often are you supposed to change the oil in your car? It’s like once a year, right?”

April wanted to laugh at the absurdness of this all, but she knew that she didn’t have time to waste. The red head walked slowly, trying to appear calm before she ducked behind the van. Anton had apparently jerked the wheel when he slammed on the brakes, causing the van to fishtail and come to a stop at an angle – perfect. She waited in the shadow of the vehicle for a few seconds, half-expecting one of the men to charge around the corner, and then reached for the door handle.

“Please be unlocked, please be unlocked.”

_Click_. 

The van door swung open, and April was suddenly face to face with the turtle.

A wave of relief rushed over her, and the girl grinned as she reached for the sliding latch on the front of his cage. “Oh thank God – are you okay?”

The creature hissed loudly, his narrowed eyes locking on hers and shining with anger. “No!”

She hesitated, drawing her hand back and watching as the turtle trembled in the low light. “Hey – I don’t know what all happened after we left, but I’m here to help.”

“No! Human hurt!”

April bit her lip. He was right – she could see the scrapes on his arms and face where it looked like he had been roughed up, and the humming collar on his neck didn’t look good. Casey cleared his throat in the distance and continued to talk loudly, but she could tell by his tone that he was starting to sound less confident. She didn’t have much time to argue.

“Listen – I’m going to need you to trust me.” She whispered as she raised her hand to the latch again and slid it open. The turtle gave a low grumble, but made no move to snap at her or fight back. “I’m sorry that those humans hurt you, but I promise that that’s the last thing I want to do. Casey and I are trying to get you home. You know, home with Small Brother?”

That was the key – she could almost see the switch being thrown in his brain as soon as she mentioned his brother.

Once the latch was undone, the girl slowly extended a hand into the cage. “Trust me, ok? Just come with us, and we’re going to get you home.”

The turtle regarded her hand for a moment, then moved his eyes to look past her. “Egg.”

April froze. “Egg?”

“Egg!”

“I – I’m sorry, I don’t know what that means?” They didn’t have time for this – April reached into the cage and tried to grab for one of the turtle’s legs to pull him out, only to brush against the collar on his neck. The metal buzzed slightly, sending pins and needles through her fingers and causing her to jerk her arm back. The tips of her fingers felt numb to the touch, and she flexed her hand to force blood back into them. “Ow – what the heck?”

The turtle blinked up at her almost apologetically, then turned his focus past her once more. “Egg. There egg-egg-egg-egg-egg!”

The collar – maybe that was why he wasn’t moving? So what did an egg have to do with this…?

Casey yelled in the distance, and April froze. “Can you check my gas tank as well? I filled it up last week, but maybe I’m running low?”

“Fine, whatever, Kid! Just stop yelling – they can probably hear you from Tokyo!”

That didn’t sound good – Casey was running out of things to distract them with.

April turned in the direction that the turtle was looking and reached into the door pocket. Immediately, her hand closed around something small and round. She pulled the object from the pocket and held it out to him. “This?”

“Egg!” he chirped excitedly, still not moving but eyes shining with child-like excitement. “Egg egg egg!”

“You doing okay back there, Babe?” Casey’s strained voice floated around the corner and she gulped.

“Almost done,” she called back, trying to keep her voice even as she turned the device over in her hands. There was only one button on the object, so that meant it had a 50/50 chance of helping. Taking a deep breath and praying that it would do what she hoped, April pushed the button.

A beep sounded from within the cage, and April heard the turtle sigh with relief. He didn’t make any moves to climb out of the car, but she could tell that something was happening as the turtle slowly turned his head from side to side and looked up at her with eyes full of adoration.

“Hurry it up, little miss! We’ve got to get back on the road!”

Okay, no time to wait. April shoved the small device into her pocket and reached into the cage to hook her arms under the turtle’s armpits. “I’m sorry if this hurts, honey, but we’ve got to move now.”

The turtle’s legs trailed limply behind as she hauled him out of the van and attempted to lift him fully into her arms, only to stumble backwards and nearly drop him. Nope – not going to work. He was surprisingly heavy despite his small frame. April grunted as she shifted her hands and tried to hug the turtle to her chest with his head resting on her shoulder. His arms still dangled at his sides, twitching occasionally as feeling started to flow back through them, and the turtle let out a nervous hum.

“I gotcha, bud. We just got to figure this out –”

“Dude, you can’t interrupt her when she’s going to the bathroom -!”

“She’s taken long enough – what’s going on back there?”

Before she had a chance to consider her next action – fight? flight? - two sharp cracks rang through the night followed by the sound of multiple heavy objects hitting the ground. Less than a second later, Casey barreled around the back of the van and nearly crashed into her. His eyes had a wild shine as he quickly took in the situation and then lunged forward to scoop the turtle out of April’s arms. “We gotta go!”

April gave a grateful nod as the boy shifted the turtle into a bridal carry and tucked the creature’s head under his chin. “What about -?”

“I gave us a few seconds – now GO!”

The teens exploded from around the van in time to see both men moaning and slowly pulling themselves to their knees. The splintered remains of a hockey stick lay scattered at their feet, clearly telling the story of their downturn. April gulped as she leapt across Anton’s long legs and threw herself into the passenger side of the Jeep. Across the car, Casey pulled open the back door and quickly dumped the turtle onto the bench seat with a “sorry, dude.”

“You will pay for that, boy,” the white man snarled as he rubbed his head, then raised his eyes and let out a yell. “He’s got the turtle!”

“Thanks for the car help, guys!” Casey scrambled to the driver’s seat and threw himself inside, managing to slam the door behind him right as Ivan lunged for his arm. “Really appreciate it!”

Another hand slapped against the passenger side door, and April shrieked as it was yanked open. Anton towered above her, a deep scowl on his face as he reached down to unbuckle her seatbelt and drag her from the car. “CASEY! DRIVE!”

“On it!” Casey’s foot slammed onto the gas pedal and the tires spun madly in the gravel, searching for traction and throwing small pebbles into the air. April continued to scream and kicked out, her flailing legs connecting with Anton’s chest and sending the man stumbling backwards. Across the car Ivan pounded on the backseat window, yelling to be let in as the turtle squawked in terror.

Suddenly, they were off! Tires gripped the road with terrifying ferocity and the Jonesmobile went flying onto the pavement.

Casey yelped as the car lunged forward, nearly overcorrecting and sending them back off the other side of the road before he could get a firm grip on the wheel. He let out a whoop of excitement as the Jeep powered down the coastal highway, aiming for a small side road that wove above the shore. Soon the van and two screaming men fell into the distance, and both teens sighed in relief.

“Freedom, here we come baby!”

Their celebration was short-lived, however, as a loud BANG suddenly cut through the darkness like a knife.

April’s eyes widened, and she turned to look out the rear window just as headlights burst to life behind them. Another loud BANG echoed through the air, and then something thudded into the back of the car. “Oh my gosh – they have guns!”

“Oh heck no – we are not dying today!” Casey gunned the engine, forcing the car to work harder as they drove onto the rocky, winding cliffside road. “Look at your computer – see if we can find the nearest police station or something!”

“Uh – sure – ok. Keep your head down!” April lunged towards the floorboards, her hands flailing to catch the laptop as the car started bouncing and shaking violently. Small bangs and thuds echoed against the Jeep, and she wondered how many of those were rocks being kicked up versus bullets being intentionally lodged their direction.

A heavy weight thudded behind her and April whipped around, wondering if another bullet had connected with their car, only to see that the turtle had slid off the seat and landed on the floorboards between the bench and the back of the drivers’ seat. His arms flailed helplessly, clearly having regained enough life to move but not to push himself back into an upright position.

“Here – ” Keeping her head down, April pushed a hand against the turtle’s shell and rolled him back onto the seat. The creature chirped in surprise, but continued to flail his arms around as the car began to shake even more violently. “What - are you going off road?”

“I am until you find directions – ” Casey had to raise his voice to be heard over the chaotic combination of bullets, rocks, and squawking coming from the back seat. “I’m trying to throw them off!”

Another BANG rang through the night, shattering the back window as a bullet lodged into the ceiling just above Casey’s head.

“Dude – that could have killed me!”

“I think that’s their point!” April ducked her head down again and started typing frantically on her laptop. She wasn’t even sure what to search for. The police? I mean technically _they_ were the criminals in this situation – but the other guys were shooting at them, so they were clearly in the wrong, right?

Casey let out a whoop as he jerked the steering wheel to one side and then the other, eliciting a shriek of metal as the Jeep sideswiped the guardrail that separated the road from a steep drop into rocky, wooded area. The van was getting closer now, its headlights shining brightly in the rearview mirror and making it impossible to look back without being blinded.

“This is totally wicked!” Casey hollered as they took another sharp turn, tires spinning and spitting gravel up into the windshield wipers. “It’s kind of like we’re in an action movie, ya know?”

“You’re insane - and slow down on those turns – and calm down!” the red-head snapped first towards the driver, and then over her shoulder as the turtle continued to yell wordlessly and scrabble to get a grip in the torn upholstery. Her hands flew across the keyboard – maybe she could just find them directions to another side road where they could lose the people pursuing them?

Another loud BANG rang out, and then a large jolt rocked the Jeep first to one side and then the other. April’s eyes snapped up from the computer just in time to see a bridge pass them on their left… while the Jeep continued to plow forward into open air. “CASEY! BRIDGE!”

***

Somewhere across Osaka, a phone rang.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm sorry that it's been so long since the last update. XP Lots of life stuff going on, but we're back and almost done!  
> Chapter 7 was initially gong to be the final chapter, but I ended up breaking it up to help with pacing - and also just because I felt bad leaving the story on a cliffhanger for so long XP
> 
> But ye! Enjoy! :D

For a brief moment, all four tires left the ground and the terrified trio found themselves suspended in the air.  
April watched out of the corner of her eye as Casey’s furrowed face slowly morphed into a more excited expression, his eyes widening and mouth rounding to let out an adrenaline-fueled whoop.  


The turtle in the backseat had finally managed to dig his claws into the ripped upholstery and was clinging desperately even as the rest of his body began to lift off of the seat. Based on the panicked squeals emanating from his beak, defying gravity was a new sensation to him and one he was not particularly thrilled about.  


A steep, tree-covered cliffside rose before them almost in slow motion, and April dug her fingernails into the worn armrests as the Jeep began to tilt and angle downwards. The scientific portion of her brain snapped into action, quickly assessing the situation. Based on their trajectory they shouldn’t flip, but it was still going to hurt. She squeezed her eyes shut again. Maybe if she didn’t look, that would help.  


Then time began to tick again.  


Tires met gravel with a cacophonic chorus of scraping metal and screaming voices. The bottom of the car’s frame skipped once across the earth, nearly tearing off the bumper as the car continued to barrel towards a thick grove of pine trees.  


“CASEY – ”  


“AAAAAA!”  


Illuminated vegetation began to whiz past their headlights in bursts, quickly disappearing into the darkness behind them as Casey jerked the steering wheel from side to side. Years of playing hockey had evidently gifted him with quick reflexes, seeing as he was able to weave the vehicle between several trees before she could even process what was happening.  


Heedless to the thumping windshield wiper blades, piles of green needles began to gather along the bottom of the glass as branch after branch slapped against their car. April bit her lip, wondering just how far this tree grove could go and then praying that it wouldn’t end with them flying over the edge of another, steeper cliff. At least the van had looked even less prepared to go surfing through the forest – as if that were something people normally prepped for. Speaking of which… She glanced in the wobbling rearview mirror, scanning the row of green behind them for any sign of pursuit, and then gave the smallest sigh of relief. At least for now, it looked like they were alone on this cliffside adventure.  


Before she could even think to verbalize this discovery, Casey stomped on the brakes and the redhead pitched forward with a pained grunt of surprise. She grimaced as the seatbelt tightened roughly across her torso for the second time that night – at this point, she was fairly certain her shoulders and ribcage were covered in blossoming bruises.  


The tires skidded beneath them for a moment, struggling to find traction on the shifting ground and threatening to send them spinning off into the tree line. Finally, after a few agonizingly long seconds, the Jeep came to a jerking stop.  


Casey cut the engine the second the tires had stopped rotating, halting the thudding windshield wipers halfway through their pilgrimage and leaving the glass partially covered with pine needles. He turned to face his passengers, a triumphant grin already pulling at his lips. “And that’s what I call a perfect stop! I expect my valet parking tip now, thank you.”  


“You’ve got to be kidding me,” April gave a breathless laugh, her heart still tap dancing in her chest as she unlatched her seatbelt and carefully rotated her shoulders. True to her theory, they were already aching from the vinyl restraint. “Your ‘tip’ is to not drive over the edge of a cliff without at least giving everyone in the car a solid heads up. Now c’mon – we should keep moving.”  


“Duly noted,” Casey gave a nod in agreement, but the smug ‘I-told-you-so’ grin stayed on his face even as he climbed out of the driver’s seat. “However, I don’t see anyone following us, so I think that this would be considered a win for Jones and the Jonesmobile.”  


A sudden shuffle of movement and a sharp click interrupted April’s quick retort, and the teens turned just in time to see the back driver’s side door swing open. The turtle in the backseat let out an excited chirp, his clawed hands dropping from the door handle and bracing against the seat as he prepared to fling himself headfirst onto the pine needle covered ground.  


April yelped in alarm, throwing herself across the center console to grasp at the lip of the turtle’s shell. “Casey –”  


“I’ve got him,” The boy was already on the move, rounding the Jeep before his name had fully left her lips. He grunted softly as he caught the squirming turtle under its armpits, then louder as he shifted the creature into a cradling position. As soon as she knew the risk of him falling was over, April climbed out of her seat and jogged around the car to stand by the other two. “Yo, dude, calm down. We’re safe now.”  


The creature let out a low growl of frustration, his thick tail whacking against Casey’s thighs as he wriggled in the boy’s arms. “No! Need go Home! No-” he gestured broadly, indicating the entire car, and then attempted to roll out of Casey’s arms.  


“Dude, chill! I don’t want to drop you!”  


“Hey, hey! Calm down – ” April reached her arms out, attempting to catch one of the turtle’s flailing limbs and nearly getting smacked across the face in the process. Yikes – she’d felt those claws before and was not interested in feeling them again. Taking a step back, she continued to speak in her attempt at a calm and level voice. “We’re leaving the car, okay?”  


The turtle stilled by a degree, giving Casey just enough time to secure his grip and hoist the creature into a more comfortable position. Big brown eyes locked onto April’s wide blue ones, and the creature stared into them imploringly. “No car?”  


April gave a nod in agreement, a relieved smile pulling at her lips. “No more car.”  


Her promise seemed to have been all that he was looking for, as the turtle nodded in agreement and took a slow, deep breath. It was just then that April noticed the rapid way his plastron was rising and falling with each inhale, and the way his tail had curled back between his legs. Despite being a roughly 200-pound reptile, there was something about his neutral state of nervousness that made him appear almost like a small child cradled in Casey’s arms.  


Casey seemed to come to the same conclusion that she did, as his next words were spoken in a soft tone that she could only imagine him using with his younger sister. “I feel ya, dude. After everything you’ve been through tonight, I’d probably hate cars, too.”  


The turtle let out a huff of agreement, turning his gaze up towards Casey. “No car. Home.”  


“Agreed. I’m ready to go home for the night, too. Now we’ve just got to… um…” the teenage boy paused, his head swiveling like a periscope as he seemed to take in their surroundings for the first time since parking. After a moment of shuffling in a tight circle, thoughtful ‘hmm’s whistling from his nose, he turned back towards April. “Hey, Apes? You’re the scientist here – what exactly is our next step?”  


“Oh, we just… um…” Blood rushed to her cheeks as both males turned to face her, confusion etched across their features. April bit her lip. That was actually a good question. She knew from previous experiences in releasing hospitalized creatures that the best way to ensure they made it back home was to release them at or near the coordinates where they had originally been found. But then again, Oroku Inc. already had that information – and what if they’d already guessed the teens’ plans and were moving that direction? What if the turtle’s brothers were already being herded into cages and taken back to the laboratories?  


“I was thinking that we should…” she swallowed thickly, suddenly aware of the way that her throat seemed to be swelling with each wave of doubt. Her darting eyes flicked past the turtle’s wide, staring ones, and she lowered her head in sudden shame. What had she gotten them into? They really had no idea what they were doing – who did they think they were? Steve Irwin? As if. And now her dad was going to find out about what they had done, and they were going to go to jail and the turtle would be taken back and –  


A hand suddenly rested on one of April’s own, grounding her in reality even as the tornado of nerves continued to swirl in her mind. Simultaneously, a low thrumming sound almost like a distant motor began to fill the air.  
Her face jerked back towards the cliff, eyes instinctively scanning the rocky crags several dozen yards away. Had the goons found them after all? Were they about to come flying over the rails?  


“Uh, Ape? He’s vibrating.”  


April turned back towards her companions, blinking in surprise when her eyes landed on the turtle. He was still cradled in Casey’s arms, tail tucked between his legs and breathing slowly returning to a normal rhythm. However, he was now leaning towards her, arm outstretched to grab at her nearest hand. A look of concern marred his face – not like the fearful, defensive look that he’d been wearing earlier. No, this was a more timid expression – one of… pity? He was worried for her? And that sound… it almost felt familiar. Threads of long forgotten memories wove through her mind, reminding her of feelings of warmth and safety. She was suddenly a toddler again, curled up in her father’s lap and feeling his chest rise and fall beneath her cheek as he softly hummed. The sensation reverberated deeply in her chest and then up through her bones, slowly beginning to untangle the worried knot in her stomach.  


Ever so slowly, as if a sudden movement would make everything come crashing down, April rotated the hand that the turtle was touching and held it palm side up. The turtle seemed to recognize this gesture and moved his own hand to accommodate. Thick claws and scales wrapped slowly around April’s hand, and she smiled warmly.  


“I don’t know what you’re doing, but thanks,” she offered softly, closing her eyes and letting out a shaky breath. The humming sound continued, quietly clearing the fog from her head and making it easier to think. “And I’m sorry – I didn’t mean to freak out just now. I’m just trying to figure out the best course of action. Like we’re going to get you back to the ocean – that much I can promise. I’m just trying to figure out the best way that we can do that and get you home while still protecting you and your family.”  


The thrumming sound faltered as the turtle listened, head cocked and eyes squinted. “Protect Family… from Bad Humans?”  


April felt her heart sink a smidge, and she glanced over the turtle’s head to make eye contact with Casey. He really did understand more than they had initially thought; she might as well explain the situation at hand. “Yeah, those two guys that had you in their van were really bad, and they have more bad friends. We got you away from them for now, but they already know where it was that you were initially captured – so I’m worried that if we take you back to that location and leave you there with your brothers, they’ll just show up tomorrow and start this all over again.”  


As April spoke, the humming sound slowed to a stop and the turtle slouched in Casey’s arms. His forehead creased in thought as he processed her words. “What if… what if Brothers move? Then… protect?”  


“That might work,” Casey used one of his hands to pat the turtle’s shell in agreement. The creature arched his back, still not a huge fan of being touched more than was necessary. “If you guys moved somewhere else like, ASAP, it would be harder for anyone to find you.”  


“But for how long could that actually work?” April asked, squeezing the turtle’s hand again. “And you guys would have to move pretty fast – like within the hour of us getting you to the correct coordinates.”  


He hummed softly, this time sounding more tired. “Have Sometimes Home? Not long travel from Home, but still good.”  


“Ok – that could work!” she nodded enthusiastically, equally trying to cheer him up and reassure herself. For now, this was the best idea they had – it would have to work. “But before we do anything else, let’s get that collar off.”


	8. Chapter 8

Salt.

His head perked up and he inhaled greedily, scent glands tingling as he drank in the thick, sharp scent of ocean air. His senses had alerted him a while ago that they were approaching the shoreline - even before the humans had verbalized their own realizations - but the increasing smell of the water and the deep rumble of churning waves still made his heart beat all the faster. A primal desire deep within his bones yelled louder and louder with each plodding step, urging him to hit the ground running and not stop until he could feel shifting sand between his toes and icy spray on his skin.

He was fairly certain that he could successfully make a break for it at this point – most of the feeling had returned to his limbs, despite Girl not being able to remove the “collar” as planned. She’d stated her intent to do so after she and Boy finished covering their car with branches, hoping to disguise it while they were gone and cover their tracks. Once she’d seemed satisfied, the girl squatted before him and pulled the egg from an unseen place in her pelt.

“There’s only one button on it,” she’d reasoned out loud as she rolled the object in her palm and glanced nervously at his neck. He hadn’t liked her expression – why was she so hesitant now? Just remove it! “When I clicked the controller last time, it seemed to turn the power off. So maybe clicking a second time will make it release?”

She’d been wrong.

The moment her fingers left the surface of the egg, he felt his body begin to shut back down. Thankfully she’d been able to undo the process before his panic could fully set in, but the experience had still left him rattled and wanting to either smash the egg or bury it deep within the earth.

After that plan had failed, she and Boy decided that they would take turns standing behind him and prying at the collar with all of their might. He’d cringed away from their outstretched hands at first, giving small growls of warning when they reached for his throat, but reluctantly relented when Girl mentioned that the sooner they could get it off, the sooner they could get moving. He settled on clenching his teeth and curling his claws tightly into fists as the humans both attempted to jam their fingers into the small gap where skin met collar.

After a few minutes of them tugging and him mentally screaming, Boy gave a sigh and announced that he should be able to get it off using tools from “the Marina”. Girl had seemed to agree, and the next thing he knew, he’d been scooped back up into Boys’ arms and the trio began their slow journey down the cliffside.

The majority of the long walk had consisted of the two humans quietly talking between themselves while he squirmed anxiously in Boy’s arms; this was better than being held still, but it was still far from what he would consider comfortable. He’d tried to distract himself by listening in to their conversations initially, but gave up after only a few minutes. He’d long prided himself as being the best interpreter in his family, but now he felt like he was only catching a third of what was being said. What in the world were they even going on about, and why did it take so long for each Human to speak? Surely their communications could be much more efficient if they simply focused on vocal inclinations – why waste time sounding out long phrases that could just get lost amongst the waves?

In an effort to keep his mind calm, he took this time to reflect on either Human’s voice; he focused on memorizing their sounds and taking note of how exactly their tones changed as he spoke.

Boy was definitely the louder of the two and seemed to be more aggressive – though not quite in a way that made him fearful; he wasn’t like the Humans from earlier. He simply seemed to dive into his words and actions headfirst, not stopping to consider the potential consequences. This theory was proven correct several times during their walk, when Boy would suddenly take off running and launch himself over piles of leaves and twigs. The turtle clung to the front of his pelt each time, chattering nervously as he was jolted about and nearly dropped on multiple occasions. However, despite the Human’s abrupt movements, he couldn’t help but feel secure in his arms. Being held steady by calloused hands had become a traumatizing part of this whole ordeal, but this was… different. In more ways than one, Boy reminded him of Strong Brother.

Girl, on the other hand, was different; if he had to choose between the two of them, he felt more inclined to trust her. Her calm, caring and sometimes worried manner was comforting. She was clearly strong and could be loud as well – was this just a universal trait in Humans? – but she seemed to be more reserved with her volume. Her hands were also smaller and gentler than Boy’s. Even when she’d been breaking him out of the moving prison, her tone and hands had stayed soft and kind, promising him that everything was going to be okay. She’d kept all of her promises so far – they were out of the terrible place, away from the two “goons” as she referred to them, and were heading towards the ocean.

The longer they walked, the calmer he could feel himself becoming. Even if he could only understand a portion of what was going on, he couldn’t help but feel safe. Still, he felt hungry to know more.

Speaking of hunger.

He curled slightly inwards, arms wrapping around his stomach as a loud grumble echoed from within his body.

“What was that?” Both humans froze in their tracks, heads swiveling around. He stiffened as well- were they being pursued? What was happening?

His stomach gurgled a second time, ignoring his shushing and attempts to stay still and quiet. Two pairs of eyes instantly fell on him.

“Holy crap- was that your stomach?”

He blinked in surprise. Wait – they were startled by him? Did Humans not have hunger sounds?

“ _Y-yes,_ ” he finally answered in Family Tongue. “ _Need eat._ ”

The two teens stared back, blinking. “Um… come again?”

“ _Food._ ”

More blinking and glancing between each other.

He sighed tiredly. It had been a long day, and he didn’t know the correct Human Spoken Word translation. Why couldn’t they just understand? He patted his lower plastron with emphasis and spoke again, this time dragging out the sound. “ _Hungryyyyyy._ ”

The Humans hesitated, and for a moment he felt like he was going to cry with frustration. Then Girl finally spoke up, patting her own stomach and cocking her head. “It’s probably been a while since he last ate – maybe he’s hungry? Is that it? Are you hungry?”

The turtle bobbed his head in excited relief, patting his plastron again. “Hun-gerr-ee.”

“Right – hungry!” Girl laughed, and he felt his heart skip a beat and clench all at once. Her happy sounds reminded him of Small Brother. It felt like it had been a lifetime since he had last heard the orange speckled turtle laugh. “Well, we should be reaching the marina any minute – there’s usually a couple of shops that are still open at this hour, so I’m sure we can grab something to eat.”

“Speaking of which,” Boy suddenly squatted and sat his passenger on the ground, then stood back up and rolled his shoulders. “Ugh – my back is killing me. No offense dude, but you weigh a heck ton.”

The turtle shuffled his feet on the pine covered ground and cocked his head thoughtfully, considering the words. He wasn’t sure what they meant, but he could tell by the tone that they seemed despairing. After a moment, he nodded and pursed his lips in an imitation of the Human’s expression. “’Fense, Dood.”

Another surprised laugh bubbled out of Girl’s mouth, which she quickly stifled with her hands.

Boy shook his head, but his large grin and shaking shoulders betrayed the laughter that he was holding back. “I’m sorry – that was kind of rude. I was going to say, though, we’re getting close to the marina now so we should probably figure out what the plan is.” He pointed at Girl. “How about you guys stay here while I go rent the boat and grab us something to eat? I can text you or something when I’m ready, and you guys can come meet me at the docks.”

“Sounds good to me,” Girl nodded, then hesitated. She gestured in the direction they had been headed. “Wait –what if someone sees him? I know there’s probably not much of a crowd right now, but there’s bound to be security cameras and at least a couple of people that would freak out. Maybe we should cover him up?”

To the turtle’s horror and fascination, Boy reached down and grabbed the bottom of his pelt, then yanked it over his head to reveal a second layer underneath. Before he had a chance to gawk any further, Boy leaned over and dropped the outer pelt into his lap. “Here – take my hoodie. It might not totally fit over your shell, but at least it will get you semi-covered.”

He stared down at the material in his lap, still pondering whether or not he should fling it away in disgust, when Boy suddenly turned, pushed through the bushes, and vanished into the night.

“ _Wait – where he going?_ ” he whined softly. “Why leave?”

Pine needles crunched nearby as Girl joined him on the ground. She crossed her legs, resting her elbows on her knees and chin in hand, then leaned forward as she spoke softly. “I’m not sure how much of that you understood, but Casey is going to go get us a boat, okay? Then he’s going to text me – err, tell me when he’s ready - so that we can go join him at the water.”

“Water.” he repeated, bobbing his head. “Cay-cee go to water?”

Girl grinned, a small huff of air escaping her nose as her cheeks curved upwards. “He is. And speaking of Casey and I, let’s have a talk.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day! <3 Thanks to my beta readers for chugging through these so quickly!

“So,” April slowly began, trying to keep her voice calm and nonchalant as she eased into the conversation. Now that they had a chance to settle down, her mind was going into hyperdrive. She had a real-life marvel of nature in front of her, something - no, someone – unlike anything that had ever been seen before. Common sense screamed at her to grab her camera or sketchpad and document as much as she could while she still had the chance. She leaned forward as close as she dared, elbows balanced precariously on her knees and chin in hand. Respect for his clearly set boundaries kept her from getting too close to the turtle, but at the same time… “I realize that the past twenty-four hours have been a bit crazy, to say the least, so we haven’t really gotten a chance to actually… you know, introduce ourselves. So can I ask you what your name is?”  


The words came out of her mouth in a tumbled rush, and she mentally scolded herself. He was still clearly skittish and prone to sensory overload – she would do better to remain calm until he was more comfortable.  


Seconds of silence dragged on, forcing April to squint in the low light to try and read the turtle’s crinkled expression. He fidgeted with the strings on Casey’s hoodie, rolling the twisted fabric between his claws and sniffing it curiously. April sucked in her lower lip and chewed on it thoughtfully. That had probably been too long of a question – maybe she should reword it?  


“No you,” he finally answered, then gave a firm shake of his head to punctuate his words.  


April blinked in confusion, slightly caught off guard. “No… me? Do you… oh! Do you mean that I should go first? That’s fair.”  


The turtle cocked his head again, watching as she leaned back and confidently patted her chest with an open palm.  


“My name is April O’Neil – but you can call me April,” she gestured in the direction that Casey had disappeared. “And the other guy is Casey. We go to school together.” She stuck her hand out and the turtle hesitantly mimicked her gesture, his mouth forming a surprised ‘o’ shape as she grasped his palm in her own and gently shook. “Nice to meet you.”  


“Ay-puh-ril nice tumeetchu.” A happy gurgling sound emanated from the back of the turtle’s throat. He grinned and pumped their joined hands up and down once more, all while he continued to experimentally roll the new sounds around in his mouth like a marble. “Ay-puh-ril. Ayy-pril. Apuhril.”  


“Yeah, April!” The redhead smiled back, again wishing that she had her camera. What her dad wouldn’t give to see this conversation. After a few more seconds of the turtle shaking her hand and humming attempts at the new word, she wiggled her fingers loose from his grip and pointed at the turtle’s chest. “Ok, your turn. What’s your name?”  


Almost immediately, he drew back. The turtle’s mouth snapped shut, and his eyes looked away. Even in the low light, she could see his cheek moving as he began to chew on the flesh. “No.”  


“I… I don’t understand. Do you not have a name?”  


He hesitated again, eyes shifting to look back in the direction of the marina. A wave of emotions she couldn’t quite understand washed quickly over his face, then was gone by the time he turned back to her. “Family.”  


“Your name is Family?”  


He shook his head again. “No you.”  


April huffed through her nose. This must be how he felt, trying to understand everything that was going on based on context clues and limited words. “Are you… not going to tell me?”  


There was another pause, and then the turtle bobbed his head up and down.  


April rocked back on her heels. None of this made sense, but… alright. “Okay, you don’t have to tell me. But in the meantime, would it be okay if we gave you a name – you know, just so we can have something to call you for the time being?”  


That seemed to catch his attention. The turtle’s eyes widened suddenly, and he blinked at her in surprise. “Ay-puh-ril give name?” She watched as he slowly raised a hand and patted his chest, as if struggling to comprehend what she had just asked. “Give name?”  
“Is – is that alright?”  


He blinked again, still looking stunned, and then nodded wordlessly.  


“Okay,” she dug her fingertips into the pine needle covered earth, unconsciously wiggling them as she thought. “So this might sound really weird, but recently we’ve been studying the Renaissance in school and some of their names have kind of stuck in my head.” She looked back up, then gave an apologetic grin at the turtle’s confusion twisted expression. “Sorry – that’s a lot of words. Um… I’ve been learning about artists.”  


The turtle shook his head – clearly none of this meant anything to him. “Ar-tist?”  


“They’re uh… people. That make things.” April squinted as she searched for the right words. How would you explain this to a child? “And they use those things to tell stories and make people happy.”  


“Hmm.” The turtle hummed thoughtfully, though he still sounded unsure.  


“Anyways, there was this one artist named Donatello. He wasn’t the most talkative guy and didn’t really like being out and around other people, but he was still basically a genius. He broke new ground and made art that was like nothing people had ever seen before.” April smiled fondly. “For some reason, that seems like it kind of fits you.”  


The turtle cocked his head, and she watched as he silently mouthed the word several times before speaking it out loud. “Tell-lo. Dun-tello?”  


“Yeah – it’s kind of a hard name. Maybe ‘Donnie’ would be easier?”  


“Dawn-nee. Donnn-nee.” He repeated, then gave a broad smile and lifted a palm to his chest. “Donnie.”  


“Right!” April grinned. This was one of the first times she had ever seen him genuinely smile, and suddenly the night seemed a little bit brighter. “It’s nice to meet you, Donnie.”  


***  


“What do you mean you LOST him?” Baxter Stockman slammed his fist down on the desk, gritting his teeth in disgust as a stack of paperwork shuddered once and then tumbled to the floor. “How in the world do you lose a TURTLE that is locked up and sedated?”  


“To be fair, we didn’t lose it in like a … misplacing sense,” Ivan’s voice quivered slightly, betraying the anxiety that he was clearly trying to suppress. Baxter rolled his eyes. What he wouldn’t give to be speaking to these imbeciles in person – if only just to wrap his hands around their necks and strangle them.  


“In what SENSE did you lose it, then?” he slammed his fist down again. The sound of wood creaking echoed through the small office, and he couldn’t help but take a twinge of pride at the frantic whispering on the other end of the phone.  


“We were doing everything that we were supposed to,” Anton’s voice came through, slightly steadier than Ivan’s but still clearly unnerved. “But we were ambushed.”  


“Yeah, ambushed!” a voice echoed in the background.  


“Ambushed by WHOM?”  


“There – there were these agents. Tons of them! I’m guessing they were some environmentalist hippies or something? I don’t know – and they ambushed us and stole the turtle before we could stop them!”  


Baxter ran a hand over his face, trying to calm his seething nerves for just a moment as he processed what was being said. “And how would any environmentalists know what was going on? Hamato Labs was supposed to be under NDA for our business dealings.”  


“I – I’m not sure. Maybe one of them snitched to the press or something?”  


Ivan’s voice spoke up again, slightly louder as if he had taken the phone. “The guy we met with – Dr. O’Neil? – he seemed really antsy the whole time we were there. He got really nervous when we decided to use the collar you sent.”  


The scientist froze, hand still on his face. “You used the collar?!”  


“Yes?”  


“Maybe you IMBECILES haven’t totally screwed everything up then,” Dr. Stockman lunged for his computer and began to type rapidly, his eyes flicking back and forth across the screen as he opened multiple programs and began to scroll through files. “You did actually activate the collar, didn’t you?”  


“Yeah, of course. We got the collar on him at Hamato Labs, and it was still active while we were driving. But… what does that matter?”  


“It matters because as long as the collar is active, it will send out a radio signal to our devices for the purpose of recording location and vital signs. So unless you found some way to mess this up as well,” A map suddenly popped up on the screen, and the scientist let out a joyful shout. “YES! I have several pings from when you were driving, and what looks like… one short ping on a cliffside on the eastern end of the island.”  


“That makes sense,” Anton’s voice filtered back through the phone. “We chased them for a while and lost their car somewhere on a mountain trail. I thought that they went over the rails, but Ivan over here convinced me that they kept driving northbound.”  


“They would have had to have a death wish to go over those rails – it leads to a steep cliff and half a forest. You’d have to be lucky to not end up wrapped around a tree!”  


“Well apparently they were lucky!”  


“QUIET!” Dr. Stockman pounded his fist on the desk one more time, instantly shutting the two men up. “We have the coordinates from where the turtle was discovered, as well as his last known location. And based on the blood samples we received, he carries magnetite in his brain.”  


There was a pause.  


“That’s… good?”  


The scientist rolled his eyes and made a mental reminder to ask for new lackies. Leaning into the phone, he hissed. “Using an iron compound in their brains, sea turtles can perceive Earth’s magnetic field and will use that for navigation.”  


Another pause.  


“… So he’s not lost?”  


That did it. Baxter was on his feet again, hands still moving on the keyboard as he screamed into the phone. “It MEANS, you IDIOTS, that we know exactly where he is going, and I can send you precise coordinates for his path. So unless you want to be the ones to explain this to Bishop, you will go! Get! Me! My! TURTLE!”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made character sheets for the boys here if you'd like to see what they look like! (https://savannahsdrabbles.tumblr.com/post/636906254510456832/i-made-some-character-reference-sheets-for-my-sea)  
> ALSO the lovely @BakedBananners01 over on Twitter drew them and I screamed a lot <3 (https://twitter.com/bakedbananners1/status/1344761846851633155)

“Ay-puh-ril, nicetumeetchu Dawn-ee, Cay-see. I Don-ee, Cay-see, Ahpril nicetumeetchu,” the turtle hummed softly under his breath, still rolling the words over and over in his mouth. He squinted, brown eyes straining to focus in the dim light as he used a claw to trace abstract patterns in the dirt. It had been at least thirty minutes since Casey’s departure, and with their main light source being the soft glow from April’s phone, the two unlikely comrades had settled into a quiet reverie beneath the pine trees. “Don Dun Dunntello Don Dondon Dawn-ee… April?”

“Yes, Donnie?” April glanced down at her phone for what felt like the hundredth time, her teeth working impatiently on her already cracked and sore lower lip. When the screen only blinked back a warning of low battery, she tucked the device into her pocket and drew her knees to her chest. It was getting chilly out – hopefully Casey was doing okay without his hoodie.

“Cay-see go?”

“Mh-hm. Remember? Casey went to rent a boat, and then you’re going to guide us so that we can take you home.” She cast her eyes sideways, watching as Donnie furrowed his brow and bobbed his head to show he was listening. “Right now we’re just waiting until he texts and says that the boat is ready.”

“Tehks?”

“Yup,” April tapped the phone-shaped outlined in her pocket, then bit her lip and mumbled a silent prayer that he didn’t ask for a further explanation of technology and digital communication – she’d had a difficult enough time explaining that to her grandparents. “Until then, we’ve just got to wait here.”

The turtle tilted his head and squinted at her pocket for a long moment, his expression clearly saying that he had more questions, but finally nodded and turned back to his doodles. “Bōto o matsu.”

April blinked.

Bōto o… wait for boat? Okay, so not only had he understood, but he understood enough to respond in another language. Cool, cool, okay.

She brought a hand to the bridge of her nose and squeezed, trying to ignore the migraine that had been building behind her eyes over the past few hours. How in the …? She knew he’d used a few Japanese phrases when they had first spoken in the lab, and logically she knew that living in Japan that would be the language he was most exposed to – but in the same vein, none of this made any logical sense. What kind of person could imagine a multilingual, anthropomorphic mutant turtle, accept that as fact, and then continue about their day?

Before her brain could wander any farther down that trail of thought– what next? Aliens? Superheroes? - April felt her phone buzz and heaved a grateful sigh of relief. “That should be Casey – time to get moving!”

The turtle perked up, his head swiveling like a periscope to search the surrounding shadows. “Where-?”

His question was cut off as April surged to her feet, her hands carefully grasping and guiding him upwards alongside her. The turtle yelped in surprise and grabbed for handfuls of her top once upright, wobbling slightly as he tried to balance himself. 

“Here – Casey’s hoodie is going to help keep you covered, okay?” April reached down to grab the jacket from the ground, bundled it up in her hands and then gestured for the turtle to raise his arms. He did so reluctantly, then yelped once more as she quickly pulled the material over his head and began to guide his arms through the fabric. “There likely won’t be too many people out at the marina on a school night, but we want to make sure we don’t draw any extra attention – plus there’s plenty of security cameras out there and it’ll be impossible to completely avoid those.”

“Mmmf!” Was Donnie’s only response, his arms starting to pinwheel frantically before April caught hold of them. A stretch of the hoodie’s neckline had gotten caught on the turtle’s snout, partially obscuring his eyes and totally covering his mouth. April adjusted the fabric with a chuckle, freeing the creature from his polyester prison, and then took a step back to examine her work.

Even compared to her relatively average five and a half feet, Donatello was short – if she had to guess, he probably wasn’t any taller than four foot ten. Considering that the hoodie he now wore was made to fit Casey’s nearly six foot self, it was hard not to see the turtle as a toddler playing dress up in his parents’ clothing. The way that the fabric hung and draped over his body made him look even smaller, if that were possible; should he sit down, he might get lost amongst the apparel. Were it not for the glinting metal collar around his neck and the look of growing discomfort on his face, April would have thought he looked ready to curl up in bed.

“Hmmm,” Donnie hummed pensively, clearly not feeling the comfort that April was perceiving. The turtle gave his fabric-obscured hands a hard shake, eyes wide and increasingly nervous noises emanating from his mouth as he rapidly rotated his limbs in search of his missing appendages.

April giggled and started to step forward to help him roll up the sleeves, but then held back when a quiet voice in her mind chided. _Let’s see if he can figure this out._

Donnie glanced up with a piteous whine, looking as if he had her thoughts and realized she wasn’t coming to his rescue, then hesitated. April could almost see the cogs turning in his brain as he stared at her rolled sleeves and free hands, then turned back to his own predicament. After a brief moment of thought and one more comparative look, the turtle raised an arm to his mouth and bit down on the sleeve, then gently tugged until his hand slowly slipped free.

“Hoo-dee!” he chirped triumphantly, holding up his free hand and waving it in delight.

“Right, you’re wearing a hoodie!” April grinned, then reached around the turtle to guide the hood over the back of his head. He didn’t seem to mind now, attention already turning back to the process of freeing his second hand. “We’d better keep the hood up for now, but look at us! Just two normal teens on the beach!”

The turtle’s eyes lit up at her last word. He dropped his sleeve in surprise, then turned to point a claw in the direction Casey had disappeared. “Beach!”

“Yup! Now let’s get you home!”

***

Donnie’s heart pounded as he stumbled along behind April, her warm hand holding him steady as the ground beneath them slowly transitioned from poky greens to the tan, shifting sands he knew so well. He’d been able to hear the ocean for a while now, but the moment they pushed through the last bushes and stepped out onto the beach - suddenly everything felt real. The cool, moist air, the promise of water and food and Home and his family – he was so close!

With every step towards the illuminated Human structures in the distance, he felt the urge building in his system – the desire to break loose from April’s gentle guidance and take off running towards the ocean. A familiar tugging sensation pulled incessantly at the back of his mind, calling out in the voices of Father and his brothers.

“ _This way, Clever, this way! Almost there! Almost Home!”_

Their voices were like a siren’s song, beckoning him closer and closer with promises of healing and reassurances that he would soon be safe in their arms.

A breathless half-sob caught in his throat, and he swallowed thickly before trilling in response, his voice echoing out across the beach. “ _Wait for me; I’m coming! I’ll be Home soon!”_

No sooner had the call left his mouth when April shook his hand gently, calling his attention back to the situation before them. He sighed and slowly drug his eyes away from the shore. As much as he wanted to release April’s hand and take off running… something told him that he needed to wait and stay with the two Humans. They had gotten him this far, and if the danger was imminent enough that he and Brothers were going to have to relocate…

“It looks like there’s a few people out on the marina, but I think we’re good,” April spoke in a low voice as she gestured towards the fast-approaching structures with her free hand. Two rows of buildings stood tall amongst the rolling dunes, serving as a departure from the otherwise untouched beach. Sand made way for a long wooden platform that served as the buildings’ foundations and stretched almost a mile out into the ocean. “My dad brought me down to the pier a few times when we first moved to Osaka - it’s pretty fun during the daytime. There’s a few shops and restaurants out on the board walk, and during the summer they host a carnival.”

Donnie nodded absently, his focus already drifting back out across the ocean. “Casey?”

“We’re almost to him. His text said that he was under the –”

A long, shrill whistle suddenly cut through the air, followed by a loud ‘YO!’ that snapped Donnie back to attention. He startled slightly, the sharp movement shaking the hood from his head and sending it sliding down his shoulders.

April heaved a sigh.

“And that would be the Master of Subtlety himself.” Even without looking, Donnie could imagine the way that the girl’s eyes were rolling and her shoulders slouching. He’d seen that exasperated look – and worn it – whenever his brothers did something foolish. With a sigh and a tug on his hand, April headed towards a shadow-y area tucked under the edge of the pier. “Come on.”

The turtle nodded obediently, his pace quickening and heart fluttering they moved closer towards the shoreline.

***

“You know, the point of texting was supposed to be that we kept quiet,” April called out as they approached the pier. She squinted, searching the shadows until they slowly began to give way to separate, more distinct shapes. “You could have at least waited until we got closer before you let the whole beach know where you were.”

“I wanted to make sure that you guys found me,” Casey replied, his voice already sounding smug– clearly a sign that he was up to something. There was a soft grunt as he pushed against one of the pier’s support beams, and then he and the boat slid out of the shadows.

April opened her mouth, hesitated, and then closed her eyes. The headache from earlier was returning. “Casey – what in the world is that?”

“Oh, you mean this beauty?” the teenage boy patted the side of the boat, an impish grin on his face, and then threw out his arms as the tiny, rust-ridden vehicle slowly began to tip towards the right. He flailed wildly for a moment, water splashing as the boat continued to rock from side to side, then finally froze with arms outstretched in a T-pose. “Er – she’ll be much more steady once you guys get in and help distribute the weight.”

“Mh-hm.” April cocked an eyebrow. “I can deal with unsteady; I’m more concerned about getting tetanus, or that thing sinking the second I put one foot in.”

“Yeah, well apparently it’s pretty expensive to rent a nice boat to go ‘somewhere in the ocean’ and come back ‘at some point’,” Casey stuck his tongue out, but kept his arms outstretched. “The shop owner guy looked like he wanted to kick me out more than anything, but I managed to make a deal with him. Apparently they were planning to send this boat to the scrap yard tomorrow morning, so the Jonesman – that’s me - offered to take it off of their hands and save them a trip.” Casey moved to fold his arms across his chest, but then threw them out once more as the boat rolled beneath him. “I was – oh boy, one sec – thinking of naming it the O’Neilmobile, but with that attitude I just might have to reconsider.”

“How will I ever deal with such a loss?”

“I guess Jonesmobile: The Squeakquel will have to do.”

“Casey.”

“It’s Captain Casey now.”

“I’m not calling you that– do you think that thing will stay afloat with all of us? Maybe we should rethink our plans –”

Suddenly and without warning, Donatello dropped April’s hand and surged forward.

“Don-?”

The turtle stumbled heavily as he cleared last few feet of sand, clearly too frantic to think out his steps, but the moment his claws touched foam something seemed to click inside.

“Water – look! Water-water-home!” Breathless words and excited sounds spilled from his lips like a pot bubbling over, coming quick and fast and soon dissolving into a symphony of hums and noises that April could only think to call laughter. He tipped his head back, eyes closed and body shaking with the sounds as he kicked and frolicked through the surf, sending salt water splashing in every direction. _“_ Beach-water-Family-water-water-Home!”

April cast a nervous glance over her shoulder, half afraid that his mirth would attract unwanted attention, but Casey waved the thought off.

“Just… give him a minute,” he smiled, eyes following the turtle as he danced amongst the waves. “I think he needs this.”

April hesitated, but she couldn’t help the smile growing on her face, nor the relieved laugh she gave as Donnie turned towards to them. He grinned widely, eyes shimmering, and then flopped backwards into the water.

“Look! Look water!” His chest heaved as he laughed breathlessly. “Water!”

“I’m happy for you, Bud,” Casey said, nudging the edge of the pier once more so that the boat drifted closer. “We’re so close to getting you home.”

The turtle nodded and laughed again, then pushed himself up into a sitting position. Rivulets of water ran down either side of his face, congregating under his chin and then dripping down to the already soaked hoodie that now hung heavily from his shoulders. He gave a slight shake of his head, sending droplets skittering across the water’s surface, and then lifted a hand to pat his chest. “Donnie.”

Casey cocked his head, eyes sliding to April. “Donnie?”

“It’s short for Donatello,” she smiled and held out her hand towards the turtle. He stood and took it gratefully, eyes gleaming with renewed energy and more life than ever before. With a little tug, she drew him alongside her and stepped closer to the boat. “He needed a special name.”

“Kind of a hard name for someone just learning English,” Casey leaned down to grab a few items from the bottom of the boat and then shifted backwards to give them more room. “I was thinking something more along the lines of ‘Bill’ or ‘Casey Junior’.”

“Pfft - as if,” April held the edge of the boat steady as Donnie scrambled over the side, then plopped himself by Casey’s feet. When the boat didn’t immediately capsize under the weight of a second passenger, she pulled herself in and settled on the bench seat opposite Casey. Now that she was actually in the boat, tucked beside the two guys she was on this adventure with… it suddenly didn’t seem so cruddy. No, this boat was just right for what they needed. “Hey – did you get life vests?”

Casey turned to face the motor and straddled his seat, the movement causing the boat to rock dangerously. “Naw, we’ll be in the boat the whole time, so it shouldn’t be a big deal. Plus you and Donnie can swim.”

“Wait – can you not?”

“And off we go!”

The engine took a moment to roll over as Casey tugged on the pull cord, but eventually started with a loud roar that sent Donnie scrambling for safety against April’s legs. She reached down and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, and then they were off! The little boat began to power forward at a steady speed – not as fast as she would have liked, but enough so that April’s hair began to tangle around her face. She squeezed her eyes shut, spitting a strand out of her mouth and suddenly wishing that she’d brought a hair tie.

“Here – take this!” Casey called over the sound of the engine. April opened one eye, then grinned when she saw what Casey offering. “Coach said I’m only allowed to keep my hair long if I pull it back during practice, so I always have extra rubber bands on hand!”

“Thanks!” April took the present gratefully and quickly pulled her hair back into a tight bun. Now that that problem was solved… “By the way – did you end up grabbing food like you mentioned?”

The boy’s eyes lit up, and he bent down to grab the objects he’d moved to make room for Donnie. “Oh, yeah! I hit up the McDonald’s on the board walk right before I went to the boat place. I asked the cashier what she suggested for my ‘pet turtle’ and she said suggested a head of lettuce. They were out of that at the moment though, so…” He passed a brown paper sack to April, and then extended a small box to the turtle. “Donnie, can you say ‘chicken nuggets?’”

“Chih nuddets.”


End file.
